A Cross-Sectional Study to Assess the Prevalence of Risk of Obstructive Sleep Apnea in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Tertiary Care Hospitals, Western Maharashtra

Background: Diabetes and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) are bidirectionally related to each other. Therefore, the study is aimed to find the prevalence of risk of OSA among Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus patients in tertiary care hospital of Western Maharashtra. Material and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the OPDs of tertiary care hospitals. Consecutive sampling technique was used to select 300 study subjects. Sociodemographic data was collected and biophysical parameters were recorded. Berlin questionnaire was administered to the study subjects as a screening tool to identify high risk OSA cases. Results: Among 300 study subjects, 120 subjects (40 %) were in the age group of 51-60 years of age, 192 (64 %) cases were females, 212 subjects (70.7 %) were diagnosed as a case of Type 2 DM since greater than5-10 years, 146 subjects (48.7 %) had hypertension and 255 cases (81.3 %) were under the treatment regime of oral hypoglycemic agents. The prevalence of high risk of OSA was found to be 59 % (177 cases) among 300 study subjects. Statistical association showed significant association of Gender with prevalence of risk of OSA. The mean BMI of high risk OSA cases was 27.61±4.35kg/m2 and had a statistically significant association with prevalence of risk of OSA. HbA1c value also showed significant association with prevalence of risk of OSA (mean HbA1c among high risk OSA cases= 7.87±1.27 %) Conclusion: The prevalence of risk of OSA is increased in patients with DM. Most of these patients exhibited no typical clinical symptoms of OSA and would have been undiagnosed without diagnostic screening assessment of OSA. Thus, screening questionnaires for OSA would help the health care workers to identify the patient with high risk OSA and provide referral of high risk OSA cases to the Sleep medicine department for polysomnography to confirm the diagnosis of OSA and thereafter get appropriate treatment as early as possible.