The prevalence of sleep-disordered breathing among survivors of acute pulmonary embolism

Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is associated with prothrombotic effects that could lead to venous thromboembolic diseases. The objective of this study is to clarify the prevalence of SDB among survivors of pulmonary embolism (PE). One hundred six consecutive PE patients were prospectively evaluated by portable monitoring (PM). Nocturnal polysomnography was performed in all subjects who were diagnosed by PM to have an apnoea-hypopnoea index (AHI) > 15/h or evidence of increased daytime sleepiness. The overall SDB prevalence in the study population was 58.5 %. Mild obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) was diagnosed in 35.8 % of patients. Of the subjects, 12.3 % suffered from moderate OSA. In 10.4 % of study participants, OSA was found to be severe. High-risk PE was significantly more frequent among subjects with an AHI > 15/h (p = 0.005). OSA is a common comorbidity of PE and possibly represents an additional risk factor for hemodynamic instability in PE patients.