Obstructive Sleep Apnea: Relationship of Some Clinical Parameters to Severity of the Disease
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- Category: Vol. 77, March 2009
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Obstructive Sleep Apnea: Relationship of Some Clinical Parameters to Severity of the Disease,TAREK F. YOUSSEF, ASHRAF S. ABOU-HALAWA, MOHAMAD N. EL-ATRIBY, NAGY M. ISKANDER and QASEM M. BUHAIBEH
Abstract
Background: Although essential before surgery, in-lab polysomnography and in-hospital sleep studies cannot be done indiscriminately for all patients with potential diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Some clinical parameters may be used to select patients for these studies, thus increasing their cost-effectiveness.
Objective: Studying the relationship of body mass index (BMI), modified Mallampati index (MMI), tonsil size and thyroid-mental distance (TMD) to the grade of OSA.
Study Setting: Tertiary referral hospital.
Patients and Methods: Thirty consecutive patients (20 men and 10 women) in the age range of 30 to 60 years with snoring for at least 3 months and observed cessation of respiration during sleep were included. SAMTM monitor (Intercare Technologies, Inc, Milwaukee, WI) was used for an eight-hour in-hospital sleep study.
Results: There was a statistically significant relationship between BMI, MMI and tonsil grade and the grade of OSA (p=0.01, p=0.036, p=0.05 respectively). No statistically sig-nificant relationship was found between TMD and grade of OSA (p=0.456).
Conclusion: In patients with potential diagnosis of OSA, BMI, MMI and tonsil size grade are helpful in selecting patients for in-hospital sleep studies.