Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Heart Failure

Mortality rates were twice as high among heart failure patients with untreated OSA as among those with mild or no OSA.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a common but underrecognized disorder in heart failure patients, is associated with adverse hemodynamic effects. To determine whether it is also associated with higher mortality rates, Canadian researchers performed polysomnography in 164 chronic heart failure patients with no history of sleep apnea; follow-up averaged 2.9 years.

Most patients (113) had mild or no sleep apnea. Of the 51 patients with moderate-to-severe OSA (apnea-hypopnea index, ≥15/hr of sleep), 14 were treated with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) and 37 were not treated. In an analysis controlled for age, New York Heart Association functional class, and left ventricular ejection fraction, the death rate was significantly higher in …

Reviewing Author

Kirsten E. Fleischmann, MD, MPH