Evaluation of the Sleep Quality and the Risk of Obstructive Sleep Apnea in Patients with Stable Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Objective: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the subjective sleep quality, factors affecting sleep quality, and the risk of Obstructive Sleep Apnea syndrome (OSAS) in the patients with stable Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary disease (COPD). Materials and Methods: We included the patients who were admitted to our chest diseases clinic and evaluated as stable COPD in the study. Pittsburgh Sleep Quality index (PSQI) and STOP-Bang survey were applied to the patients to evaluate the sleep quality and the risk for OSA. Results: We included 75 patients (67 males and 8 females) in this study. In total, 38.7% of the patients had a PSQI >5, whereas 61.3% of them had a PSQI <= 5. The comparison of groups revealed a significant difference in terms of diagnosis of hypertension, excessive daytime sleepiness, and sleep efficiency (p=0.005, p=0.049, p<0.001, respectively). There was no significant difference regarding the COPD stages between the groups (p=0.141). The question "to go to the toilet at night" from PSQI was the question had the highest score. According to the STOP-Bang score, 15 (20%) patients were identified at a low risk, 27 (36%) were at a medium risk, and 33 (44%) at a high risk for OSA. Conclusion: We determined that 37.8% of patients with stable COPD had a poor sleep quality and 44% of them were at a high risk for OSA. Patients with a poor sleep quality were more hypertensive and had lower subjective sleep efficacy. "To go to the toilet at night" was one of the factors that negatively affect sleep quality. Questioning patients with COPD at an advanced age in terms of nocturia can help in revealing an underlying co-morbid condition. Moreover, it is also important to implement measures that may lead to an increase in sleep quality.