Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) was diagnosed in more than half of 200 active duty service members with combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) who were studied at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington.
Compared with age-matched peers with just one of these disorders, the service members with PTSD and OSAS had poorer somnolence and sleep-related quality of life and were less adherent and responsive to positive airway pressure therapy.
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The findings “highlight the need for a high index of suspicion and a comprehensive approach to identifying and treating sleep-disordered breathing in these patients,” Dr. Christopher J. Lettieri of the Uniformed Services University in Bethesda, Md., and his associates wrote (Chest. 2016 Feb;149[2]:483-90). “Given the prevalence of OSAS in patients with PTSD and its adverse impact on symptoms and adherence, early identification may improve outcomes.”
In the observational cohort study, 200 consecutive active duty service members who were diagnosed with PTSD as part of post-deployment screening underwent sleep evaluations regardless of whether there was clinical suspicion of sleep-disordered breathing. More than half – about 57% – were diagnosed with OSAS. Almost 60% of the study group had mild traumatic brain injury, which has been connected in prior research to obstructive sleep apnea, and many had comorbid insomnia. Those who were diagnosed with OSAS were older and had higher BMIs than those not found to have OSAS.
All 200 patients were compared with 50 consecutive age-matched control patients who had OSAS but had not been deployed and did not have PTSD, as well as with 50 age-matched service members without prior deployment or either of the two disorders. All of the patients diagnosed with OSAS were prescribed positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy and evaluated after a month.
Sleep quality was poor in the majority of patients with PTSD, and OSAS and PTSD were both independently associated with increased daytime sleepiness and lower quality-of-life index scores. However, patients with both conditions fared significantly worse, particularly with respect to quality of life as measured by the Functional Outcomes of Sleep Questionnaire (FOSQ).
FOSQ scores were abnormal at baseline in 60% of those with PTSD and OSAS, 43% with PTSD alone, 24% with OSAS alone, and 7% of those with neither condition.
Service members with both conditions also were less likely to adhere to therapy; 30% regularly used continuous PAP therapy, compared with 55% of those who had OSAS alone.
And while continuous PAP therapy improved daytime sleepiness and quality of life in patients with both PTSD and OSAS, the degree of improvement was less than that experienced by those with OSAS alone. PTSD “represents an independent barrier to the effective treatment of OSAS and should prompt multipronged and individualized care,” they wrote.
The researchers reported having no financial disclosures.