Evaluation of Compliance with Continuous Positive Airway Pressure in Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome

Abstract

Background and Objective: Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is a breathing disorder during sleep and de-fined as unexplained sleepiness during the day, with a minimum of five obstructive respiratory events per hour of sleep. This study aimed to evaluate the compliance to continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) in patients with OSAS. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on OSAS patients whose polysomnography test was performed at least 1 year before, and CPAP was prescribed for them. Apnea–hypopnea index (AHI) and patients’ demographic information were recorded. Results: This study included 105 patients with OSAS. The mean AHI score was 40. Patients were distributed into three groups according to their AHI: Mild (5 ≤ AHI < 15): 20 patients (19%), moderate (15 ≤ AHI < 30): 25 patients (23.8%), and severe (AHI ≥ 30): 60 patients (57.1%). Patients were divided into three groups based on their use of CPAP: 27 (25.7%) patients were regular users of CPAP, their time average use was 5.4 hours a day; 11 (10.4%) patients were in the group who stop using their CPAP, their average of time use was 6.4 hours a day; and 67 (63.8%) patients were in the group who did not use the CPAP. Conclusion:The long-term adherence to CPAP in patients with OSAS was 25%, which correlated significantly with their financial situation, while there was no significant association between the use of CPAP with age, sex, educational status, and the severity of sleep apnea.

Keywords

• Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome
• Continuous positive airway pressure
• Polysomnography