Sleep Disturbances and Respiratory Events in Snorers

Snoring is breathing with a hoarse sound during sleep caused by the vibration of membrane structures in the upper airway. Snoring can manifest as a primary snoring to obstructive sleep apnea with an apparent decrease in quality of life. The purpose of the current survey was to evaluate the clinical manifestations and polysomnographic (PSG) findings of snorers.

This descriptive-analytical study included 98 snorers who referred to a sleep clinic from September 2009 to June 2010. All subjects filled a questionnaire containing demographics, clinical symptoms, the epworth sleepiness scale (ESS), comorbid diseases and medications. Full PSGs have been performed for each patient. Records were scored manually according to the guidelines of American association of sleep medicine (AASM). Finally, all data was analyzed by chi-square test and t-test.

Mean weight of patients was 86 ± 18 kg and 80 individuals were overweight or obese. Moreover, 74 patients were male. According to PSG findings, 90 subjects had obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS), 2 had upper airway resistance syndrome (UARS) and 6 suffered from primary snoring. ESS scores more than 8 were observed in 65 persons. There were significant correlations between body mass index (BMI) and OSAHS (P < 0.01) and arousal index (AI) (P < 0.01). Moreover, the correlations between excessive daytime sleepiness, feeling unrefreshed during days and apnea hypopnea index (AHI) (P < 0.01) and AI (P < 0.01) were significant. The breath pauses reported by the patient's spouse was also significantly correlated with AHI (P < 0.04). The prevalence of patients with mild, moderate and severe sleep apnea was 16.3%, 21.4% and 58.2%, respectively.

The sensitive signs for evaluation of OSAHS are snoring, tiredness and excessive daytime sleepiness. It seems to be necessary to screen snorers for the quantity and quality of sleep in order to refer patients for PSG.