A case of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome: unusual comorbidity

Launois-Bensaude syndrome (LBS) is a rare disease, characterized by the accumulation of fatty tissue predominantly in the neck, shoulders and thorax, whose diagnostic is clinical.

We describe a new case in a 73 year-old man. As the patient was obese, complained of snoring and was treated for hypertension, we looked for a morbid association with an obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS).

A polysomnography (PSG) and a cervical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were performed.

PSG demonstrated OSAS with an apnea-hypopnea index of 43/h. Cervical MRI showed fatty infiltration resulting in airway narrowing at the pharyngeal but not at the tracheal level. Only, 3 cases of such a morbid association have already been published; in 2 of these patients was a tracheal compression. More over a metabolic syndrome was present.

This observation draws attention to the need for seeking OSAS among patients affected by LBS, even in a moderate form, and emphasises the roles of the upper airway narrowing by the fat infiltration as well as the role of the metabolic syndrome in the genesis of OSAS.