This study aims to investigate anthropometric measures and their effectiveness as
screening method for diagnosing obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in each gender. We
also evaluated which measures were associated with OSA in the adult population
of a large metropolitan city, Sao Paulo, Brazil. 552 women and 450 men were
submitted to polysomnography (PSG), and the anthropometric measurements as body
mass index (BMI), waist-to-height ratio, neck and waist circumference were
collected. The measurements were then compared with the OSA classification
established by the PSG. In women, waist circumference and waist-to-height ratio
were found to be the best predictor, while in men, the factors with great
potential for identification varied according to severity of the disease,
highlighting waist-to-height ratio, neck circumference and BMI had strongest
association. The accuracy of the classification in relation to mild-to-severe
OSA based on cut-off values of 92.5cm for waist circumference was greater than
72.9% in men, and 78.9% in women based on cut off values of 95cm. Regarding
severe OSA, cut-off values of 116.1cm were greater than 91.3% accurate in the
male population, and 95.1% in the female population with a cut-off value of
126.5cm. The study found waist circumference and waist-to-height ratio to be the
best measure to assess sleep-disordered breathing in women. Waist-to-height
ratio and neck circumferences were the best measures in men with mild OSA, but
BMI was more closely associated with severe OSA. The present study identified
the anthropometric variables with the highest risk for OSA and their respective
cutoff value, according to gender.
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