Resolution of Symptomatic Obstructive Sleep Apnea Not Impacted by Preoperative Body Mass Index, Choice of Operation...

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a serious obesity-associated disorder that causes significant short- and long-term medical consequences.

The objective of this study is to compare the 6-month and 1-year postoperative symptomatic OSA remission rates of patients undergoing bariatric surgery based on their preoperative body mass index (BMI) stratification, type of bariatric operation-sleeve gastrectomy (SG) or Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB)-and OSA severity.

We retrospectively analyzed 297 obese patients with a diagnosis of OSA who had undergone either SG or RYGB between 2011 and 2015.

The overall 6-month symptomatic OSA remission rate for patients (n = 255) was 74.5%. At 6 months, patients with a preoperative BMI of 30-34.9 kg/m² (class I), 35-39.9 kg/m² (class II), and 40+ kg/m² (class III) had 100, 70.0, and 75.0% (p = 0.2164) remission rates, respectively. The 6-month remission rates for SG and RYGB were 75.3 and 70.8% (p = 0.5165), respectively. The overall 1-year symptomatic OSA remission rate for patients (n = 162) was 87.1%. At 1 year, class I, II, and III patients had 100, 85.7, and 87.5% (p = 0.5740) remission rates, respectively. The 1-year remission rates for SG and RYGB were 89.2 and 81.2% (p = 0.2189), respectively. A sub-analysis (n = 69) based on preoperative OSA severity levels did not affect the remission outcome at either the 6-month (p = 0.3670) or 1-year (p = 0.3004) follow-up.

Most obese patients experience symptomatic remission of their OSA after bariatric surgery, regardless of their preoperative BMI, choice of operation, or OSA severity.