Grunstein R R, Wilcox I
Sleep Disorders Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, NSW, Australia.
Baillieres Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1994 Jul;8(3):601-28. doi: 10.1016/s0950-351x(05)80288-5.
Recent epidemiological data indicate that obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) and related conditions are extremely common in the middle-aged population. Obesity is an important aetiological factor in sleep-disordered breathing with a multifactorial role in the pathogenesis of upper airway occlusion. One extreme of the spectrum of sleep-disordered breathing is obesity-hypoventilation syndrome (one type of OSA with awake respiratory failure). Sleep-disordered breathing has a number of clinical consequences, including excess cardiovascular morbidity. Obesity is an important confounder of this association. Treatment of these disorders has been revolutionized by the use of nasal continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP). Weight reduction reduces apnoea severity but is not curative in most obese patients with sleep apnoea.
近期流行病学数据表明，阻塞性睡眠呼吸暂停（OSA）及相关病症在中年人群中极为常见。肥胖是睡眠呼吸障碍的一个重要病因，在上气道阻塞的发病机制中具有多方面作用。睡眠呼吸障碍谱系的一个极端情况是肥胖低通气综合征（一种伴有清醒时呼吸衰竭的OSA类型）。睡眠呼吸障碍会产生一系列临床后果，包括心血管疾病发病率增加。肥胖是这种关联的一个重要混杂因素。经鼻持续气道正压通气（CPAP）的应用彻底改变了这些病症的治疗方式。体重减轻可降低呼吸暂停严重程度，但对大多数肥胖的睡眠呼吸暂停患者而言并非治愈性方法。
