PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Thomas M. Berghaus
AU  - Christian Faul
AU  - Fabian Unterer
AU  - Wolfgang von Scheidt
AU  - Martin Schwaiblmair
TI  - Sleep-disordered breathing in acute pulmonary embolism: A dangerous comorbidity?
DP  - 2012 Sep 01
TA  - European Respiratory Journal
PG  - P1500
VI  - 40
IP  - Suppl 56
4099  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/40/Suppl_56/P1500.short
4100  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/40/Suppl_56/P1500.full
SO  - Eur Respir J2012 Sep 01; 40
AB  - Background: Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is a common comorbidity in patients with acute pulmonary embolism (PE) but its prognostic relevance is not clear. Therefore, we conducted a prospective cohort study to clarify if the presence of SDB is associated with an adverse outcome in acute PE. Methods: 106 consecutive PE patients were prospectively evaluated by portable monitoring (PM). Nocturnal polysomnography was performed in all subjects who have been diagnosed by PM to have an apnoea-hypopnoea index (AHI) > 15/h or evidence of increased daytime sleepiness. All-cause mortality was registered after a mean observation period of 12 months. Results: Neither central sleep apnoea nor periodic breathing were observed. Mild obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) was diagnosed in 35.8% of patients. 12.3% of subjects suffered from moderate OSA. In 10.4% of the study population OSA was found to be severe. High-risk PE was significantly more frequent among study participants with an AHI > 15/h (p = 0.005). All-cause mortality was significantly higher in patients with moderate to severe OSA compared to subjects with an AHI > 15/h (8.3% vs. 2.4%, p = 0.003). Conclusion: OSA is a common comorbidity to PE and might be associated with an increased mortality in survivors of acute PE.