The Effects of External Nasal Dilator Strips on Sleep and Cardiovascular Health

August 17, 2026 updated by: Joseph Watso, Florida State University
The goal of this interventional study is to learn if wearing an external nasal dilator strip while sleeping changes objective and perceived sleep quality, immediate post-waking blood pressure, and immediate-post waking heart rate variability.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Nasal dilator strips are strips often made up of stiff plastic, placed on the lower bridge of the nose by an adhesive strip. They work by slightly pulling the nostrils and surrounding nose bridge area outward, dilating the nostrils, and decreasing air resistance. Nasal breathing is associated with lower diastolic blood pressure, an important marker of heart health, in comparison to mouth breathing. In addition to blood pressure, nasal breathing during sleep is potentially related with better sleep quality. Participating in this study will help us understand the effect nasal dilator strips have on cardiovascular and sleep health. Better understanding of the benefits of nasal dilator strips will provide important knowledge to researchers who study how the body works.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
30

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.
  • Name: Joseph D Vondrasek, MS
  • Phone Number: (850) 644-1281
  • Email: jdv22e@fsu.edu

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Florida
      • Tallahassee, Florida, United States, 32306
        • Cardiovascular and Applied Physiology Laboratory

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age 18-30
  • BMI <30
  • Has a smartphone and is willing to download EliteHRV and OMRON mobile applications.
  • Able to use a nasal dilator strip

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Overt cardiovascular (e.g., diagnosed hypertension), respiratory, neurological, renal, liver, and/or metabolic health conditions.
  • Current or recent (regular use within the past 6 months) use of tobacco or nicotine products (e.g., cigarettes).
  • Currently pregnant, trying to become pregnant, or lactating.
  • Inability to breathe through the nose.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Basic Science
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Crossover Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
No Intervention: No External Nasal Dilator Strip
The control arm will last 7 consecutive nights and days. Participants will be asked to follow normal activity and sleep patterns. Immediately after waking the participants will measure their blood pressure and heart rate variability and complete a sleep diary to characterize subjective sleep quality. A wrist-based activity monitor will measure objective sleep quality during the control arm.
Experimental: External Nasal Dilator Strip
The experimental arm will last 7 consecutive nights and days. Participants will be asked to follow normal activity and sleep patterns, but they will wear an external nasal dilator strip during sleep. Immediately after waking the participants will measure their blood pressure and heart rate variability and complete a sleep diary to characterize subjective sleep quality. A wrist-based activity monitor will measure objective sleep quality during the experimental arm.
Device: External Nasal Dilator Strip
Participants will wear an extra strength Breathe Right nasal strip overnight.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Weekly Averaged Systolic Blood Pressure
Time Frame: Immediate post-waking for 14 consecutive days. Weekly averages (e.g. day 1-7 vs 8-14) will be compared between conditions.
Brachial systolic blood pressure will be measured with an automated blood pressure monitor (OMRON BP5250).
Immediate post-waking for 14 consecutive days. Weekly averages (e.g. day 1-7 vs 8-14) will be compared between conditions.
Weekly Averaged Diastolic Blood Pressure
Time Frame: Immediate post-waking for 14 consecutive days. Weekly averages (e.g. day 1-7 vs 8-14) will be compared between conditions.
Brachial diastolic blood pressure will be measured with an automated blood pressure monitor (OMRON BP5250).
Immediate post-waking for 14 consecutive days. Weekly averages (e.g. day 1-7 vs 8-14) will be compared between conditions.
Weekly Average Standard Deviation of Normal-to-normal R-to-R Intervals (SDNN)
Time Frame: Immediate post-waking for 14 consecutive days. Weekly averages (e.g. day 1-7 vs 8-14) will be compared between conditions.
Heart rate variability will be measured with a Polar H10 and the Elite-Heart Rate Variability (HRV) mobile application.
Immediate post-waking for 14 consecutive days. Weekly averages (e.g. day 1-7 vs 8-14) will be compared between conditions.
Weekly Averaged Heart Rate
Time Frame: Immediate post-waking for 14 consecutive days. Weekly averages (e.g. day 1-7 vs 8-14) will be compared between conditions.
Heart rate will be measured with a Polar H10 and the Elite-HRV mobile application.
Immediate post-waking for 14 consecutive days. Weekly averages (e.g. day 1-7 vs 8-14) will be compared between conditions.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Weekly Averaged Sleep Efficiency (%)
Time Frame: During sleep for 14 consecutive days (7 per condition).
Based on self-reported in-bed, sleep, wake, and out-of-bed times, this is the percent of time sleeping relative to time in bed.
During sleep for 14 consecutive days (7 per condition).
Weekly Averaged Self-rated Sleep Quality
Time Frame: Immediate post-waking for 14 consecutive days (7 per condition).
Self-rated sleep quality on a 6-point Likert scale (1=very poor, 6=very good).
Immediate post-waking for 14 consecutive days (7 per condition).

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Florida State University

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Joseph Watso, PhD, Florida State University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
May 2, 2024

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
June 16, 2025

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
June 16, 2025

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
May 3, 2024

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 3, 2024

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
May 7, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
September 9, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 17, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
July 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • STUDY00004863

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

Data with all HIPAA identifiers removed may be shared in future collaborative efforts pending appropriate data and/or material transfer agreement approvals.

IPD Sharing Time Frame

One year after completion of the trial, indefinitely

IPD Sharing Access Criteria

A formal plan identifying the intended use of the data and proper completion of appropriate data and/or material transfer agreement approvals with the study PI and their institution.

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL
  • SAP
  • ICF

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

Yes

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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