Obstructive Sleep Apnea : Diagnosis And Treatment In An Endocrine Clinic

Introduction : Seven obese patients, all bearing a diagnosis of primary hypothyroidism, presented to an endocrine clinic in Kolkata with complaints of snoring, choking spells at night and daytime sleepiness. A putative diagnosis of sleep apnea was made and patients were monitored for improvement in their symptoms with CPAP therapy, and thyroxine was stopped in all patients. Setting : Private hospital and endocrine clinic. Material And Methods : Patients were with full night poly somnography using both respiratory and neuro channels. A split-night protocol was followed if significant hypopnea/apneas were observed, whereupon therapy with CPAP was instituted in the second half of the night. Results : We found that all 7 patients had severe obstructive sleep apnea and treatment with CPAP improved oxygenation and main tained deep sleep. Four patients were found to be euthyroid. Conclusion : CPAP therapy is effective for management of Obstructive Sleep Apnea syndrome and patients are often mistakenly diagnosed as hypothyroid.