Effect of Nasal Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Treatment on Blood Pressure in Patients With Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Abstract

Background— There is increasing evidence that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is an independent risk factor for arterial hypertension. Because there are no controlled studies showing a substantial effect of nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) therapy on hypertension in OSA, the impact of treatment on cardiovascular sequelae has been questioned altogether. Therefore, we studied the effect of nCPAP on arterial hypertension in patients with OSA. Methods and Results— Sixty consecutive patients with moderate to severe OSA were randomly assigned to either effective or subtherapeutic nCPAP for 9 weeks on average. Nocturnal polysomnography and continuous noninvasive blood pressure recording for 19 hours was performed before and with treatment. Thirty two patients, 16 in each group, completed the study. Apneas and hypopneas were reduced by ≈95% and 50% in the therapeutic and subtherapeutic groups, respectively. Mean arterial blood pressure decreased by 9.9±11.4 mm Hg with effective nCPAP treatment, whe...