Obstructive Sleep Apnea With or Without Excessive Daytime Sleepiness: Clinical and Experimental Data-Driven...

Area of Science:

• Sleep Medicine
• Cardiovascular Disease
• Internal Medicine

Background:

• Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a prevalent condition with significant health and safety implications.
• Excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) is a common but not universal symptom of OSA.
• Understanding the impact of EDS presence or absence is crucial for patient management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze literature on whether the presence or absence of EDS in OSA patients is associated with distinct physiopathologic, prognostic, and therapeutic outcomes.
• To identify factors predicting EDS in OSA patients.
• To evaluate treatment efficacy in OSA patients with and without EDS.

Main Methods:

• Literature analysis of English-language articles.
• Databases searched: PubMed, Medline, and EMBASE.
• Inclusion criteria: Studies published between January 2000 and June 2017, focusing on OSA patients without EDS.

Main Results:

• A significant proportion of OSA patients do not report EDS.
• EDS is an independent predictor of cardiovascular disease (CVD), all-cause mortality, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes.
• Nasal continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy shows inconsistent effects in OSA patients without EDS compared to those with EDS.

Conclusions:

• There is ongoing debate on whether OSA with and without EDS represents a single disease with phenotypes or distinct conditions.
• Limited research exists on OSA without EDS, highlighting the need for further investigation.
• Clinicians should assess EDS status to tailor OSA treatment for improved efficacy and adherence.