Sleep apnoea in Australian men: disease burden, co-morbidities, and correlates from the Australian longitudinal study on male health

Abstract

BackgroundObstructive sleep apnoea is a common disorder with under-rated clinical impact, which is increasingly being recognised as having a major bearing on global disease burden. Men are especially vulnerable and become a priority group for preventative interventions. However, there is limited information on prevalence of the condition in Australia, its co-morbidities, and potential risk factors.MethodsWe used data from 13,423 adult men included in the baseline wave of Ten to Men, an Australian national study of the health of males, assembled using stratified cluster sampling with oversampling from rural and regional areas. Those aged 18–55 years self-completed a paper-based questionnaire that included a question regarding health professional-diagnosed sleep apnoea, physical and mental health status, and health-related behaviours. Sampling weights were used to account for the sampling design when reporting the prevalence estimates. Odds ratios were used to describe the association between health professional-diagnosed sleep apnoea and potential correlates while adjusting for age, country of birth, and body-mass index (BMI).ResultsPrevalence of self-reported health professional-diagnosed sleep apnoea increased from 2.2 % in age 18–25 years to 7.8 % in the age 45–55 years. Compared with those without sleep apnoea, those with sleep apnoea had significantly poorer physical, mental, and self-rated health as well as lower subjective wellbeing and poorer concentration/remembering (p < 0.001 for all). Sleep apnoea was significantly associated with older age (p < 0.001), unemployment (p < 0.001), asthma (p = 0.011), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease/chronic bronchitis (p = 0.002), diabetes (p < 0.001), hypercholesterolemia (p < 0.001), hypertension (p < 0.001), heart attack (p < 0.001), heart failure (p < 0.001), angina (p < 0.001), depression (p < 0.001), post-traumatic stress disorder (p < 0.001), other anxiety disorders (p < 0.001), schizophrenia (p = 0.002), overweight/obesity (p < 0.001), insufficient physical activity (p = 0.006), smoking (p = 0.005), and high alcohol consumption (p < 0.001).ConclusionHealth professional-diagnosed sleep apnoea is relatively common, particularly in older males. Associations between sleep apnoea and cardiovascular, metabolic, respiratory, and psychiatric disorders have important clinical and public health implications. As men are especially vulnerable to sleep apnoea as well as some of its chronic co-morbidities, they are potentially a priority group for health interventions. Modifiable lifestyle related factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, level of physical activity and BMI are possible key foci for interventions.

A review of approaches for analysing obstructive sleep apnoea‐related patterns in pulse oximetry data

“…The prevalence of OSA is between 8% and 38% of the general adult population . However, the gold standard for OSA diagnosis, the overnight PSG, is time and expert labour‐intensive, and consequently, waiting times can be substantial . In contrast, oximetry has the potential to be a cheaper, more accessible alternative diagnostic tool.…”

Weight loss and lifestyle interventions for obstructive sleep apnoea in adults: Systematic review and meta‐analysis

“…Sleep restriction and fragmentation produced in OSA, in turn, are risk factors for weight gain and metabolic syndromes, so there is a reciprocal relationship between OSA and obesity. Thus, patients with high‐risk of OSA may be middle‐aged men with obesity and a sedentary lifestyle, who exhibit adverse health behaviours such as tobacco and/or alcohol consumption …”

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The Prevalence of Patients at High Risk of Obstructive Sleep Apnoea in an Australian Inpatient General Medical Unit

“…Steven Katz 1 1 University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada Background: In Canada, medical students must enter the Canadian Resident Matching Service (CaRMS) 1 to match to a post graduate training program. Most programs will select medical students for interviews for available positions based on a standard file the student submits.…”