Journal of Multidisciplinary Healthcare (Feb 2024)

Prevalence of Obstructive Sleep Apnea Among Atrial Fibrillation Patients: A Cross-Sectional Study from Jordan

  • Ibdah RK,
  • Zaitoun KJ,
  • Altawalbeh RB,
  • Tayyem SH,
  • Nazzal UA,
  • Rawashdeh SI,
  • Khader YS,
  • Al-Mistarehi AHW,
  • Khassawneh BY

Journal volume & issue
Vol. Volume 17
pp. 701 – 710

Abstract

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Rasheed K Ibdah,1 Khaled J Zaitoun,2 Rana B Altawalbeh,2 Saad H Tayyem,2 Ulla A Nazzal,2 Sukaina I Rawashdeh,1 Yousef S Khader,3 Abdel-Hameed W Al-Mistarehi,4 Basheer Y Khassawneh5 1Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, 22110, Jordan; 2Faculty of Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, 22110, Jordan; 3Department of Community Medicine, Public Health and Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, 22110, Jordan; 4School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD, 21287, USA; 5Department of Internal Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, 22110, JordanCorrespondence: Khaled J Zaitoun, Faculty of Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, 22110, Jordan, Tel +962798652961, Email [email protected]: Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) is a common respiratory disorder that causes intermittent upper airway collapse during sleep and can lead to various acute cardiovascular complications. Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is the most common sustained cardiac arrhythmia and is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular hospitalization and all-cause mortality. Our study aimed to investigate the prevalence of individuals with AF and those considered at high risk for OSA.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with a population comprising patients who had visited KAUH cardiology clinics between 2017– 2019; subjects were categorized into AF patients and general cardiology patients. Patients were surveyed for OSA using the Berlin Questionnaire to assess the degree of OSA symptoms and to classify patients into high- or low-risk groups based on their responses.Results: Of the 656 patients, 545 met our inclusion criteria, of whom 192 were diagnosed with AF. Comparable demographic characteristics were observed between the AF and non-AF groups, barring higher rates of obesity (p=0.001) and smoking (p=0.042) in the AF group. The prevalence of high-risk OSA was significantly higher in AF patients (68.2%) compared to non-AF patients (29.4%), with an adjusted odds ratio of 2.473 times (95% CI: 1.434 − 4.266, p=0.001) greater for AF. The age, gender, and BMI categories did not differ significantly between the two groups. Binary logistic regression revealed significant associations between OSA and risk factors such as asthma (OR=4.408, 95% CI: 2.634– 7.376, p=0.001).Conclusion: These results serve to display a statistically significant increase in high-risk OSA in existing AF patients, irrespective of the presence of conventional OSA risk factors; this could imply a more immediate and direct relationship between both diseases and calls to include routine screening for OSA in patients diagnosed, newly or otherwise, with AF.Keywords: Berlin questionnaire, polysomnography, cross sectional study

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