Abstract
Purpose: :
To our knowledge, the prevalence of sleep apnea syndrome (SAS) in keratoconus (KC) patients has not been identified. Previous studies have suggested an association between SAS and KC. To our knowledge, this study will be the first to identify the prevalence of patients with keratoconus who have a known diagnosis or are at high risk for SAS.
Methods: :
A retrospective chart review of patients with the known diagnosis of keratoconus was performed and the past medical histories were examined for the diagnosis of SAS. We then performed a telephone survey using the Berlin Questionnaire of the subjects with no known history of SAS. Data was then analyzed. Those with a positive Berlin Questionnaire were considered to be at high risk for SAS and were referred for evaluation.
Results: :
7 out of 53 (13%) subjects had a known history of SAS. 8 out of the 53 (15%) subjects were shown to have high-risk of SAS according the Berlin Questionnaire. Therefore, the total prevalence of known SAS or high-risk symptoms is 15/53 subjects (28%). The age and sex-specific prevalences were then determined in the age range of 30-60 years. 7 out of 20 males in the 30-60 year old range (35%) had either a positive history or were at high risk of SAS. 4 out of 21 females (19%) also had either a positive history or were at high risk of SAS.
Conclusions: :
Our results show that 35% of males and 19% females in the KC ages 30-60 year population had a positive history or were at high risk for SAS. This far exceeds the general population prevalences (M = 24% and Fe = 9%) for undiagnosed sleep-disordered breathing. Our results also suggest that the prevalence of SAS among a KC population is similar but increased over the general population (7-20%). In the future we plan to determine the percentage of non-KC patients with SAS in our population and compare that to the cohort of KC patients with SAS. We also plan to follow-up with those with high risk characteristics to better determine the actual prevalence of SAS in our population.
Keywords: keratoconus • clinical (human) or epidemiologic studies: prevalence/incidence