A comparative study on the clinical and polysomnographic pattern of obstructive sleep apnea among obese and non-obese subjects

This study was designed to compare the pattern of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) among obese and nonobese subjects regarding clinical and polysomnographic data obtained for a polysomnographic study. A cross-sectional retrospective descriptive study was conducted by analyzing polysomnographic data in 112 consecutive patients underwent a sleep study at our sleep laboratory from January 2009 to July 2010. Out of them, 81 were diagnosed to have OSA (apnea-hypopnoea Index ≥5). These patients were classified in two groups with body mass index (BMI) < 27.5 kg/m(2) as nonobese and BMI≥27.5 kg/m(2) as obese. Clinical as well as polysomnographic data were evaluated and compared between the two groups. Patients were also evaluated for other risk factors such as smoking, alcoholism, and use of sedatives. Data were subjected to statistical analysis (χ(2)-test, P value