The relationship of obstructive sleep apnea risk with the disease severity and clinical parameters in COPD population

Abstract

Aim: Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) have common pathophysiological mechanisms affecting the prognosis of each other. This study aims to investigate the relationship between the presence of OSA risk and the severity of COPD and to determine the possible clinical features for OSA risk for COPD patients. Material and Method: The patients (n=181) who applied to the outpatient clinics of pulmonology between September - November 2019 with the diagnosis of COPD, were analyzed cross-sectionally. Demographic features, anthropometric measurements, comorbidities, smoking status, and severity of dyspnea, respiratory functions, and exacerbation frequency in the last year were evaluated. All patients were questioned with the Epworth sleepiness scale (ESS) for detecting excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS), and the STOP-Bang for determining the risk of OSA. Results: The rate of diabetes, waist and hip circumference measurements, median ESS score, and EDS ratio were found to be higher in patients with moderate/high OSA risk when compared to patients with low OSA risk. In the multivariate regression model; lower oxygen saturation (OR: 0.83; p=0.007) and higher ESS score (OR=1.28; p<0.001) were determined as independent risk factors affecting the OSA risk to be moderate/high. Conclusion: Low oxygen saturation, accompanying diabetes, high ESS score and, high waist-hip circumference stand out as useful factors in determining OSA risk in the COPD population. However, OSA risk was found to be the same among all COPD stages. We suggest that all COPD patients should be questioned for OSA risk regardless of the stage.

Keywords

• Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS)
• Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
• Epworth sleepiness scale (ESS)
• STOP-Bang survey

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