BACKGROUND: Coronary artery atherosclerosis has been associated with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). However, the type and severity of plaque formation have not been characterized. This study evaluated the association of coronary noncalcified plaques and severity of stenosis in patients with OSA. METHODS: This study was a retrospective analysis of 81 patients, 49 with OSA and 32 without OSA, who had undergone multidetector-row helical computed tomography scanning. The board-certified radiologist was blinded to the diagnosis of OSA and reviewed the scans for plaque characterization, severity of stenosis, and number of vessels involved. RESULTS: Of the 81 patients reviewed, the mean apnea-hypopnea index in the OSA group was 42.2 vs 7.5 in the non-OSA group. The groups did not significantly differ in the distribution of comorbid conditions. We found that among the patients with OSA, 63% had noncalcified/mixed plaques, as opposed to 16% in the non-OSA group (P < 0.0001), with unadjusted odds ratio of 9.3 (3.0, 28.4). After adjustment for other risk factors such as age, sex, race, hypercholesterolemia, and history of smoking, the association remained strong, with an odds ratio of 7.0 (1.9, 26.5; P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our study finds that the frequency of noncalcified/mixed plaques is much higher in patients with OSA than in non-OSA patients. Patients with OSA also have more severe stenosis and a higher number of vessels involved. This study adds to a growing body of data regarding our understanding of the association of OSA and atherosclerosis.
BACKGROUND:Coronary artery atherosclerosis has been associated with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). However, the type and severity of plaque formation have not been characterized. This study evaluated the association of coronary noncalcified plaques and severity of stenosis in patients with OSA. METHODS: This study was a retrospective analysis of 81 patients, 49 with OSA and 32 without OSA, who had undergone multidetector-row helical computed tomography scanning. The board-certified radiologist was blinded to the diagnosis of OSA and reviewed the scans for plaque characterization, severity of stenosis, and number of vessels involved. RESULTS: Of the 81 patients reviewed, the mean apnea-hypopnea index in the OSA group was 42.2 vs 7.5 in the non-OSA group. The groups did not significantly differ in the distribution of comorbid conditions. We found that among the patients with OSA, 63% had noncalcified/mixed plaques, as opposed to 16% in the non-OSA group (P < 0.0001), with unadjusted odds ratio of 9.3 (3.0, 28.4). After adjustment for other risk factors such as age, sex, race, hypercholesterolemia, and history of smoking, the association remained strong, with an odds ratio of 7.0 (1.9, 26.5; P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our study finds that the frequency of noncalcified/mixed plaques is much higher in patients with OSA than in non-OSA patients. Patients with OSA also have more severe stenosis and a higher number of vessels involved. This study adds to a growing body of data regarding our understanding of the association of OSA and atherosclerosis.
Authors: Dominik Linz; Holger Woehrle; Thomas Bitter; Henrik Fox; Martin R Cowie; Michael Böhm; Olaf Oldenburg Journal: Clin Res Cardiol Date: 2015-04-23 Impact factor: 5.460
Authors: Neomi Shah; Matthew Allison; Yanping Teng; Sylvia Wassertheil-Smoller; Daniela Sotres-Alvarez; Alberto R Ramos; Phyllis C Zee; Michael H Criqui; Henry K Yaggi; Linda C Gallo; Susan Redline; Robert C Kaplan Journal: Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol Date: 2015-02-05 Impact factor: 8.311
Authors: David F Smith; Christine L Schuler; Md M Hossain; Guixia Huang; Keith McConnell; Elaine M Urbina; Raouf S Amin Journal: J Pediatr Date: 2021-08-25 Impact factor: 6.314
Authors: Sunil Sharma; Anindita Chowdhury; Lili Tang; Leslee Willes; Brian Glynn; Stuart F Quan Journal: PLoS One Date: 2016-05-11 Impact factor: 3.240
Authors: Fernando De Torres-Alba; Daniele Gemma; Eduardo Armada-Romero; Juan Ramón Rey-Blas; Esteban López-de-Sá; José Luis López-Sendon Journal: Pulm Med Date: 2013-04-15