Demographics and Clinical Characteristics of Obstructive Sleep Apnea amongst Heart Failure Patients: A Cross-sectional Study from Ogun State, Nigeria

Abstract

Objective: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common disorder of breathing. It is characterised by recurrent episodes of total or partial obstruction of the upper airway during nighttime sleep. The study was aimed at evaluating the prevalence of OSA among heart failure patients and the association between echocardiogram parameters of heart failure and OSA.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study among heart failure patients confirmed by echocardiogram. The sociodemographic, clinical, and echocardiographic variables were obtained. The questionnaire was administered by two trained independent investigators. The majority of the patients had overnight polysomnography. The data collected was analysed with SPSS version 22.

Result: 110 participants (70 males and 40 females) took part in the study; the male-to-female ratio of 1.75 to 1.53 (34 males and 19 females) performed the sleep study, giving a completion rate of 67.9%. The median age was 59.8 years. Mean BMI (SD) was 38.4(4.4) kg/m². 44 participants (40.0%) had a high risk of OSA using the STOP.BANG questionnaire, while 78 (70.9%) had no excessive daytime sleep. There was no statistical significance between gender and sleep parameters. Only 18 participants (34%) had significant OSA (AHI >5). There were significant associations between OSA severity and LVEF and STOP.BANG scores in both genders. (p<0.05)

Conclusion: This study showed a substantial rate of OSA (AHI>5) and daytime sleepiness among heart failure patients. The strong association seen between the LVEF on echocardiogram and AHI showed the need for improvement in the management strategy of heart failure patients.