Does sleep apnea cause oxygen desaturation? Yes, many obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) patients have intermittent oxygen desaturation associated with periods of apnea. The deeper and longer the desaturation, the more likely it will worsen sleep apnea.
The information here can be used by OSA patients to plan lifestyle counseling and follow-up monitoring. But it is important to understand the limitations of assessing oxygen levels during sleep.
Limitations Of Autoscoring Desaturation Events
Recent studies have found that the autoscoring of desaturation events is insufficient in detecting the hypopneas associated with OSA. This problem has been attributed to the lack of standardized criteria for detecting these events in sleep laboratories.
Autoscoring desaturation events were associated with worsening Herrmann Brain Dominant Instrument (H-BDI) scores after four years, but this association is weak. Therefore, a study involving a larger number of patients may not be appropriate for OSA diagnosis. Another study in a cohort of patients with sleep apnea reported that the presence of baseline nondesaturating events increased the severity of the symptoms, and the ODI was associated with the H-BDI.
Reliability Of Oxygen Saturation Measurements
To test the reliability of oxygen saturation measurements, a study team analyzed the mean of all seven nights recorded. They found that the mean oxygen saturation was 96.2%, while the lowest saturation was 90.8%. Each patient’s measurements contributed one data point, making the reliability coefficient 0.74. The study also determined that 74% of the variance was due to the true variation of the median oxygen saturation and 26% was related to intra-individual variability. The coefficient of reliability was calculated using Spearman’s rank-order correlation and was statistically significant.
The study also examined the reproducibility of the ambulatory monitoring device’s oxygen desaturation index (ODI) to diagnose mild obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome. This study involved 35 patients who were monitored with a portable recording device, MESAM-IV. Data were analyzed over seven nights to determine whether the ODI had good diagnostic accuracy and whether it was influenced by age and body mass index.
Impact Of Altitude In Sleep Apnea
A recent study looked at the impact of altitude on the occurrence of central sleep apnea during the diagnostic and treatment parts of split-night polysomnography. Participants suffering from OSA were significantly more likely to have central apnea when the central apnea index (CAI) was 5.0 or greater. Researchers analyzed the data from three Mountain West locations in the U.S. to see which factors were affected by the altitude. While altitude is an important factor for the diagnosis of sleep apnea, patients should continue their positive airway pressure therapy when traveling at high altitudes.
Oxygen desaturation is a common complication in OSA patients. Apneas can lead to oxygen desaturation, which is a significant decrease in blood oxygen levels of the body. Talk to your doctor about your sleep condition and seek sleep apnea treatment as soon as possible to protect your overall health.
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