engleski

Gender differences of polysomnographic data and sleep quality in patients with REM-related obstructive sleep apnea

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is the most prevalent sleep-disordered breathing caused by repetitive partial or complete interruptions of breathing during sleep, resulting in intermittent hypoxemia, sympathetic excitation and sleep fragmentation. OSA is usually thought to be worse in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep than non-REM (NREM) sleep and is considered as a REM- predominant phenomenon. There is still lack of evidence whether REM-related OSA is a specific clinical entity and how it is related to gender differences. The aim of this study was to determine if there were any differences in polysomnographic data and sleep quality between male and female patients with REM-related OSA. From the pool of 289 patients in the Split Sleep Medicine Center, a total of 62 patients with newly diagnosed REM-related OSA were prospectively recruited to the study and divided into two groups according to gender. REM-related OSA was defined as follows: apnea/hypopnea index (AHI)≥5, AHI(REM)/AHI(NREM)≥2, and REM>30 min. All patients attended a full-night, in-laboratory polysomnography using the Alice 5LE device (Philips Respironics, Eindhoven, Netherlands) and completed sleep questionnaires. Out of 62 patients with REM-related OSA there were 44 male and 18 female patients. There were no statistical differences in respiratory parameters between male and female patients. REM duration was longer in female patients (77.8±39.7 vs. 70.6±33.5 min, P<0.001). Quality of sleep based on sleep efficiency (80.0±11.1 vs. 73.7±14.5%, P=0.014) and total sleep time (389.1±56.5 vs. 350.0±79.9 min, P=0.031) was better in male patients. The results of the questionnaires used in the study were similar in both groups. This study demonstrated better sleep quality and shorter REM duration in male compared to female patients with REM-related OSA.

polysomnography; sleep quality; REM; obstructive sleep apnea; gender

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