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Updated: Apr 20, 2026
Drug-Induced Sleep Endoscopy DISE with Target Controlled Infusion TCI and Bispectral Analysis in Obstructive Sleep Apnea
Published on: December 6, 2016
Death and disability in patients with sleep apnea--a meta-analysis
Maria Inês Pires Fonseca1, Telmo Pereira1, Paulo Caseiro1
1Departamento de Fisiologia Clínica, Instituto Politécnico de Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal.
Background:
Several studies have been attempting to ascertain the risks of Sleep Apnea Syndrome (SAS) and its morbidity and mortality.
Objective:
The main objective was to verify whether SAS increases the risk of death; the secondary objective was to evaluate its morbidity in relation to cardiovascular disease and the number of days hospitalized.
Methods:
A systematic review and a meta-analysis were performed of the published literature. The research focused on studies comparing the number of deaths in patients with untreated SAS and in patients with non-SAS.
Results:
The meta-analysis was based on 13 articles, corresponding to a total of 13394 participants divided into two groups (non-SAS = 6631; SAS = 6763). The meta-analysis revealed a clear association of SAS with the occurrence of fatal events, where the presence of SAS corresponded to a 61% higher risk of total mortality (OR=1.61; CI: 1.43 - 1.81; p < 0.00001), while the risk of death from cardiac causes was 2.52 times higher in these patients (OR = 2.52; IC: 1.80 - 3.52; p < 0.00001). Similar results were obtained for mortality from other causes (OR = 1.68; CI: 1.08 - 2.61; p = 0.02). Resembling results were obtained in the remaining outcomes: non-fatal cardiovascular events were higher in the SAS group (OR = 2.46; IC: 1.80 - 3.36; p < 0.00001), the average number of days hospitalized was also higher in the SAS group (IV = 18.09; IC: 13.34 - 22.84; p < 0.00001).
Conclusion:
The results show that untreated SAS significantly increases the risk of death, cardiovascular events and the average number of days hospitalized.
