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. 2022 Nov 29;12(1):20582.
doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-25183-5.

Obstructive sleep apnea in young Asian adults with sleep-related complaints

Hwa-Yen Chiu  1   2   3   4   5 , Kun-Ta Chou  6   7   8 , Kang-Cheng Su  1   2   4 , Fang-Chi Lin  1   2   4 , Yung-Yang Liu  1   2   4 , Tsu-Hui Shiao  1   2   4 , Yuh-Min Chen  1   4
Affiliations

Obstructive sleep apnea in young Asian adults with sleep-related complaints

Hwa-Yen Chiu et al. Sci Rep. .

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the proportion of young OSA adults with sleep-related complaints in a sleep center, affiliated with a tertiary medical center for over a decade. This study presents a chronicle change in the numbers of young adults receiving polysomnography (PSG) and young patients with OSA from 2000 to 2017. We further analyzed 371 young patients with OSA among 2378 patients receiving PSG in our sleep center from 2016 to 2017 to capture their characteristics. Young adults constituted a substantial and relatively steady portion of examinees of PSG (25.1% ± 2.8%) and confirmed OSA cases (19.8 ± 2.4%) even though the total numbers increased with the years. Young adults with OSA tend to be sleepier, have a greater body mass index, and have a higher percentage of cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption. They also complained more about snoring and daytime sleepiness. They had a higher apnea-hypopnea index on average and experienced more hypoxemia during their sleep, both in terms of duration and the extent of desaturation. Even though the prevalence of comorbidities increased with age, hypertension in young male adults carried higher risks for OSA. Young adults with OSA have constituted a relatively constant portion of all confirmed OSA cases across time. The young adults with OSA were heavier, more symptomatic, and with more severe severity.Clinical trial: The Institutional Review Board of Taipei Veterans General Hospital approved the study (VGHIRB No. 2018-10-002CC). The study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT03885440.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Young patients with OSA constituted a substantial portion of all patients with OSA, which did not vary significantly year to year (p value for trend = 0.162). The diagnosis of OSA was defined as apnea–hypopnea index ≥ 5 while hypopnea was defined as a discernible reduction in airflow accompanied by a decrease in oxyhemoglobin saturation of 4% before 2007 and a 30% decrease in nasal pressure with desaturation > 4% after 2007.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The flow diagram of comparison of patients with OSA across age stratums.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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