Association of follicle-stimulating hormone with dyslipidaemia in men with obstructive sleep apnoea

Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is associated with both abnormal hormone secretion and dyslipidaemia. Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) can induce postmenopausal dyslipidaemia. This study aimed to explore the relationship between FSH and dyslipidaemia among male OSA patients.

A total of 257 subjects admitted to the Department of Otorhinolaryngology for uvulopalatopharyngoplasty between August 2020 and September 2022 were screened. Sleep breathing monitoring data, biochemical indicators, and physical measurements were collected. Spearman correlation tests were used to analyse the correlation between FSH and lipid levels. Logistic regression analysis was used to determine the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) for dyslipidaemia as assessed by the presence of hyper-TC, hyper-LDL-C, hypo-HDL-C and hyper-TG. The potential mediating role of FSH was estimated by the mediation analyses.

A total of 194 patients with OSA were ultimately included. Participants with a higher FSH had more severe OSA, had higher TG levels and higher percentages of hyper-TG. A positive dose-response relationship was observed between FSH and OSA severity or TG (P for trend both < 0.05). There was a positive correlation between FSH and TG (r = 0.281, p < 0.001). Furthermore, after adjusting for multiple variables, including age, BMI, smoking status, alcohol consumption, OSA severity, and oestradiol, FSH was significantly associated with hyper-TG, with ORs (95% CIs) across higher FSH quartiles of 2.791 (1.115, 6.987), 3.242 (1.272, 8.264), and 4.163 (1.441, 12.022), respectively. A significant positive linear trend was observed (p = 0.020 for a linear trend). In addition, FSH had a 14.8% mediating effect on the relationship between OSA severity and hyper-TG.

FSH was independently associated with hyper-TG and played a significant mediating role in the relationship between OSA and dyslipidaemia.