Prevalência de doença cardiovascular numa população de doentes com síndrome de apneia obstrutiva do sono

Introduction: Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome (OSAS) leads to several pathophysiologic changes that increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Among these, arterial hypertension has been the most studied and its causal association is well established. There are few data about the prevalence of these disorders in OSAS’s patients in Portugal. Type of study: Retrospective analysis. Method: Determination of cardiovascular disease prevalence and its relationship with OSAS severity grades, through clinical record analysis of 305 patients diagnosed with OSAS and followed at a Sleep Outpatient Clinic. Results:We found a prevalence of cardiovascular disease of 76,7%, with hypertension being the most frequent (60%), followed by ischaemic heart disease (11,8%) and dysrythmias (10,8%). Other cardiovascular risk factors like obesity (61,3%), diabetes (20,3%), dyslipidemia (43,3%) and history of smoking (49,8%) were also found in a high number of patients. Conclusions: Given the high prevalence of hypertension found, every patient with a diagnosis of hypertension should be investigated for the possible presence of OSAS. Also the high frequency of other cardiovascular risk factors may lead to higher morbidity and mortality in OSAS patients.