Association Between Severity of COVID-19 Respiratory Disease and Risk of Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

Iannella, Giannicola; Vicini, Claudio; Lechien, Jerome R; Ravaglia, Claudia; Poletti, Venerino; di Cesare, Simona; Amicarelli, Elena; Gardelli, Lucia; Grosso, Carmela; Patacca, Aria; Magistrelli, Eleonora; De Benedetto, Michele; Toraldo, Domenico Maurizio; Arigliani, Michele; Cammaroto, Giovanni; Meccariello, Giuseppe; De Vito, Andrea; Magliulo, Giuseppe; Greco, Antonio; de Vincentiis, Marco; Ralli, Massimo; Pace, Annalisa; Montincone, Valentina; Maniaci, Antonino; Cocuzza, Salvatore; Seligardi, Matteo; di Giacinto, Ida; Corso, Ruggero Massimo

OBJECTIVES The purpose of this observational retrospective study was to evaluate, in patients with a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection, the association between the severity of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) respiratory illness and the risk of infected patients to develop obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). METHODS Ninety-six patients with confirmed COVID-19 infection were enrolled in the study. The STOP-BANG questionnaire to investigate the risk of the OSA syndrome was filled in by the patients at admission. The enrolled patients were divided into 2 groups according to the respiratory disease: group 1 (72 patients), hospitalized patients undergoing conventional oxygen therapy; group 2 (24 patients), patients requiring enhanced respiratory support. STOP-BANG results of these 2 groups were compared to observe whether patients with high OSA risk more frequently presented a severe form of COVID-19. RESULTS 41.6% of the patients in group 2 had a STOP-BANG score between 5 and 8 (high risk of having apnea); in contrast, 20.8% of the patients in group 1 had a STOP-BANG score between 5 and 8, with a statistically significant difference between the 2 groups (P = .05). A complementary trend was observed regarding the proportion of patients in the range 0 to 2, which classifies patients at a low risk of OSA (48.6% vs 20.8% for groups 1 and 2, P = .01). CONCLUSIONS According to our data, the chances of having a severe case of COVID-19 should be considered in patients at high risk of OSA. CURRENT KNOWLEDGE/STUDY RATIONALE Emerging research suggests that OSA could represent a potentially important risk factor for the severe forms of COVID-19. The purpose of this observational retrospective study was to evaluate the potential association between OSA and the severity of COVID-19 disease. STUDY IMPACT According to our data, the likelihood of contracting a severe form of COVID-19 disease should be considered in patients at high risk of OSA.