Snoring & Sleep Apnoea Research: What's New (2024–2026)

The last two years have arguably brought more change to snoring and sleep apnoea medicine than the previous twenty. The first drug for obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) has been approved, a second pill is heading to regulators, new implants have broken a long monopoly, and the watch on your wrist can now legally tell you it suspects you stop breathing at night.

This page is our periodically updated roundup of the research that matters, translated into plain English — what was found, how solid it is, and what it might mean for you. (The last-reviewed date is shown at the top of the page.) One caveat throughout: most of the drug and device news concerns sleep apnoea, the serious end of the snoring spectrum. If you’re not sure which side of that line you’re on, start with our guide to snoring versus sleep apnoea.

The drug era arrives

Zepbound: the first approved medicine for sleep apnoea. On 20 December 2024 the US FDA approved Zepbound (tirzepatide) — a weight-loss injection — as the first and only prescription drug for moderate-to-severe OSA in adults with obesity.^[1] In the phase 3 SURMOUNT-OSA trials, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in June 2024, tirzepatide cut the apnoea–hypopnoea index (AHI — breathing interruptions per hour) by 55% in participants not using CPAP and 62.8% in those on CPAP, alongside roughly 18–20% body-weight loss.^[2] For you, the message is a familiar one made pharmaceutical: weight is the single biggest modifiable driver of snoring and apnoea, as our lifestyle changes guide explains.

AD109: a pill that wakes up your airway muscles. AD109 (aroxybutynin plus atomoxetine) takes a different route — it aims to keep the throat’s dilator muscles active during sleep rather than shrinking the tissue around them. In the SynAIRgy phase 3 trial (646 participants), topline results announced in May 2025 showed AHI fell 55.6% at 26 weeks (p=0.001), with 22.3% of participants reaching an AHI below 5 — effectively into the normal range; the company describes it as the first neuromuscular oral drug with phase 3 efficacy.^[3] The companion LunAIRo trial (660 participants) reported in July 2025 an AHI reduction of 46.8% versus 6.8% on placebo (p<0.001), sustained to week 51, with results published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine and an FDA submission signalled — potentially making AD109 the first pill for OSA regardless of weight.^[4][5] Note these headline figures came via company announcements, though peer-reviewed publications now exist.

Sulthiame: an old epilepsy drug, repurposed. Phase 2 results for sulthiame, presented at the European Respiratory Society congress in September 2024, showed AHI reductions of up to roughly 40–50% at higher doses.^[6] The results were subsequently published in The Lancet (announced November 2025), and Apnimed has licensed the drug for the US.^[7] It’s earlier-stage than the drugs above, but it widens the field: three different biological routes to the same goal.

Implants: the nerve stimulators multiply

Inspire V. The FDA approved the fifth-generation Inspire hypoglossal nerve stimulator — an implant that stimulates the nerve controlling the tongue to keep the airway open — on 2 August 2024, adding a Bluetooth remote and companion app, with launch through 2025.^[8]

Nyxoah Genio. On 8 August 2025 the FDA approved the Genio system: a battery-free implant placed through a small chin incision that stimulates both hypoglossal nerves and is powered by a disposable patch worn overnight.^[9] This ends Inspire’s monopoly on the category — competition that tends to be good news for patients. Implants remain an option for selected OSA patients rather than ordinary snorers; see our surgery guide for where they fit.

Your watch is watching your breathing

Apple Watch. In September 2024 the FDA cleared sleep apnoea notifications for Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10 and Ultra 2: the watch tracks “breathing disturbances” and, if a pattern consistent with sleep apnoea emerges over 30 days, notifies the wearer.^[10]

Samsung Galaxy Watch. Samsung got there first, receiving the first FDA De Novo authorisation of its kind for a watch-based sleep apnoea feature in February 2024, and has announced a collaboration with Stanford Medicine to develop the technology further.^[11]

Smartphones are learning to listen, too. A 2025 validation study in JMIR Formative Research tested AI snore detection on ordinary smartphones under real-world conditions, and a separate multicentre study validated an AI acoustic snoring model against wearables.^[12][13]

The essential caveat. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine’s position is that consumer sleep technology cannot diagnose sleep disorders and is not a substitute for medical evaluation.^[14] Treat a watch alert or an app recording as a prompt — genuinely useful evidence to take to a GP — not a verdict. Our when to see a doctor guide explains what proper testing involves.

Big-picture findings

CPAP users live longer — with a caveat. A meta-analysis in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine (March 2025) pooled 30 studies covering more than a million patients and found CPAP use was associated with a 37% lower risk of death from any cause and 55% lower cardiovascular mortality, with a dose–response effect (more hours of use, more benefit).^[15] Disclosure matters here: the study was supported by ResMed, a CPAP manufacturer.^[16] Even so, the direction and size of the effect strengthen the case for persevering with treatment — see our CPAP guide.

Snoring itself linked to blood pressure. A Flinders University study in npj Digital Medicine (February 2024) monitored around 12,000 people with under-mattress sensors for about six months and found that regular snorers — snoring more than 20% of the night — had higher blood pressure and greater odds of uncontrolled hypertension, independent of their OSA severity.^[17] That pushes back against the idea that “simple” snoring is purely cosmetic; more in our health risks article.

Mouthguards match CPAP on blood pressure. The Singapore-led CRESCENT trial (220 patients, presented at the American College of Cardiology and published in JACC, April 2024) found a custom mandibular advancement device was non-inferior to CPAP for reducing 24-hour blood pressure over six months in people with hypertension and moderate-to-severe OSA — partly because people wore the mouthguard longer each night.^[18] A well-fitted oral device is a genuinely credible alternative for CPAP-intolerant patients.

REM-sleep apnoea and memory. A UC Irvine study reported in May 2025 linked apnoea occurring during REM sleep to memory-related brain changes in older adults.^[19] It’s association rather than proof of cause, but it adds to the reasons not to leave apnoea untreated as you age.

Debunked: mouth taping

Not every trend survived contact with the evidence. A systematic review in PLOS One (May 2025) examined 10 studies of nighttime mouth taping covering 213 patients: only two showed even a slight benefit, limited to mild OSA, and several flagged an asphyxiation risk for people with blocked noses.^[20] We cover it fully — including who should absolutely never tape — in our mouth taping article.

Trusted organisations

For ongoing, reliable information beyond this site:

• AASM Sleep Education — patient hub and obstructive sleep apnoea overview
• AASM accredited sleep-centre directory and AASM patient information
• Sleep Foundation — sleep-related breathing disorders
• NHS — snoring and NHS — sleep apnoea
• British Snoring & Sleep Apnoea Association
• Hope2Sleep (UK charity)
• Sleep Apnoea Trust (UK charity)
• The Sleep Charity — helpful organisations