Metabolic syndrome and its components in patients with sleep apnea syndrome

Background. Sleep Apnea Syndrome (SANS) represents a significant risk factor for the development of cardiovascular disease and evidence suggests a relation with Metabolic Syndrome (MS). The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of individual components of MS and of MS as an entity, in patients with clinical suspicion of SAHS, and their relation to central obesity. Methods. We examined the records of 486 consecutive patients, 359 (73.9%) men, with a mean age of 57.3 +/- 13.5 years and a mean body mass index (BMI) of 32.1 +/- 6.5 kg/m2), with clinical suspicion of SAHS. SAHS was diagnosed from the nocturnal register. An Apnea-Hipopnea Index (AHI) > 5 was considered SAHS. MS was evaluated according to the diagnostic criteria of the International Diabetes Federation. Results. Three hundred and twenty-five (66.9%) of the entire group were moderate-severe SAHS. The mean of AHI was 30.2 +/- 23.8. We had sufficient data available on 456 patients (93.8%) for MS diagnosis and its prevalence was 64.7% (295 patients). Multivariate analysis showed that age and abdominal perimeter were predictors of SANS and MS (p<0.05). Conclusions. Patients with SAHS have a high prevalence of MS and their prevalence is greater in patients with major levels of SAHS. The rate of central obesity, measured by abdominal perimeter, predicts SAHS and MS.