[Obstructive sleep apnea in patients with coronary heart disease]

Patients with obstructive sleep apnea have an increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, those with co-existent coronary artery disease being particularly at risk. The object of our study was to evaluate the prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea in patients with coronary artery disease. 153 patients (117 men, 36 women) with verified coronary artery disease were given a highly sensitive standardized questionnaire. The 59 patients with pathological results were then checked with a 6-channel non-laboratory monitoring system. 22.2% of all patients had a respiratory disturbance index (RDI) above 5/h. and 14.4% above 10/h. 13.3% had a pathological RDI and additionally suffered from excessive daytime sleepiness. Patients with coronary artery disease have a high prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea and should consequently be screened for this sleep-related breathing disorder.