Sex differences in obstructive sleep apnoea severity, symptoms, and polysomnographic features: The Turkish Sleep Apnoea Database (TURKAPNE) Study

<bold>Background:</bold> Previous reports have suggested that the clinical presentation of obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) differs between men and women. <bold>Objective:</bold> We aimed to investigate sex differences in OSA severity, symptoms, and polysomnographic features in a nationwide registry. <bold>Methods:</bold> Participants from the ongoing Turkish Sleep Apnea Database (TURKAPNE) Study with available demographic, questionnaire, and polysomnographic data from 34 centers were included in the current analysis. OSA was defined as an Apnoea-Hypopnoea Index (AHI) ≥5/h. <bold>Results:</bold> In all, 7130 patients (2259 women) fulfilled the inclusion criteria. OSA was observed in 6323 (88.7%). In the OSA group, women were older (56.7 vs 49.5 years; p<0.001) and more obese (BMI 34.3 vs 31.4 kg/m2; p<0.001) and had lower AHI (29.8 vs 36.8/h; p<0.001) than men. The distribution of symptoms that were reported as “often” or “very often” is illustrated in <bold>Figure 1</bold>. Women had significantly less total sleep time, less sleep efficiency, and longer sleep latency than men (p<0.001). <bold>Conclusions:</bold> Loud snoring and witnessed apnoea were more common in men than in women whereas women were more frequently presented with insomnia, headache, mood changes and poorer sleep quality. Sleep physicians need to consider the different clinical presentations to avoid delay in diagnostic evaluation of OSA in women. <bold>Funding:</bold> Turkish Thoracic Society <fig><object-id>erj;64/suppl_68/PA2674/F1</object-id><object-id>F1</object-id><object-id>F1</object-id><graphic></graphic></fig>