TLDR
Mouth taping during sleep may help a small group of people, but it has not been proven useful overall. It can be dangerous for people who cannot breathe well through their noses.
Summary
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1 Study Aim
The authors conducted a systematic review (a structured summary of existing research) to assess whether mouth taping helps people with sleep-disordered breathing (abnormal breathing during sleep) or obstructive sleep apnea (repeated airway blockage during sleep). They also examined possible harms. The study asked whether mouth taping provides meaningful benefits without creating serious safety risks.
2 Study Design
The researchers followed Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA), a standard process for reviewing studies. They searched MEDLINE, Embase, and Google Scholar from 1999 through 2024. Two reviewers independently screened records and extracted data. From 120 records, 10 studies involving 233 participants were included. The studies used several designs, including one randomized controlled trial (a study assigning participants by chance), prospective studies, and cohort studies. They assessed tape, mouth seals, and chinstraps in children and adults with breathing problems during sleep. The review combined results from different studies but could not perform statistical pooling because the evidence was limited and varied widely.
3 Findings
The review reports that only a few studies found improvements in the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI, the number of breathing interruptions per sleep hour) or oxygen desaturation index (ODI, drops in blood oxygen during sleep). Benefits mainly appeared in people with mild obstructive sleep apnea. Other studies found no meaningful improvement, and one found better results with a jaw device alone than with the device plus mouth taping. Four studies warned that sealing the mouth may cause asphyxiation when nasal blockage or regurgitation is present. All 10 studies had poor-quality evidence, and many excluded people with nasal obstruction. The authors recommend better research and do not support mouth taping for general use. Mouth taping is not a proven general treatment and may seriously harm people who cannot breathe freely through their noses.