Sleep-disordered breathing in premenopausal women: Differences between younger (less than 30 years old) and older women

Objective: To compare clinical manifestations and polysomnographic data of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) in younger (less than 30 years old) versus older premenopausal women. Methods: A cohort of 420 premenopausal women diagnosed with SDB in a university sleep clinic during a 5-year period underwent systematic collection of clinical and polysomnographic variables. Results: One-hundred and fifteen (27.4%) women were younger than 30 (mean 24.5 +/- 3.5 years), while 305 (72.6%) were older than 30 (mean 39.5 +/- 5.7 years). The younger premenopausal women had less severe SDB with a trend towards upper-airway resistance syndrome. Despite similar daytime consequences, snoring was less common in the younger group. Both groups of premenopausal women frequently had insomnia and nasal abnormalities or craniofacial-deficiency. Conclusion: Recognizing the different clinical features and understanding the different polysomnographic presentation of SDB in young premenopausal women are crucial to detecting and treating this syndrome. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.