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Abstract: PO1114

Self-Reported Sleep Apnea-Related Symptoms in a Prospective Hemodialysis Cohort

Session Information

Category: Dialysis

  • 701 Dialysis: Hemodialysis and Frequent Dialysis

Authors

  • Kalantar, Sara S., University of California Irvine, Irvine, California, United States
  • You, Amy Seung, University of California Irvine, Irvine, California, United States
  • Novoa, Alejandra, University of California Irvine, Irvine, California, United States
  • Amel Peralta, Rene, University of California Irvine, Irvine, California, United States
  • Nakata, Tracy, University of California Irvine, Irvine, California, United States
  • Rhee, Connie, University of California Irvine, Irvine, California, United States
Background

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is the most prevalent sleep-related breathing disorder in the general population. While growing data suggests that OSA is more common in hemodialysis (HD) patients, there remains under-diagnosis of this disorder in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) due to symptom overlap with uremia. We thus sought to examine clinical features associated with OSA in a well-defined prospective cohort of HD patients.

Methods

Among 452 HD patients from the prospective Malnutrition, Diet, and Racial Disparities in Kidney Disease cohort recruited across 16 outpatient dialysis clinics, we administered protocolized questionnaires querying clinical features of OSA over 10/2011-3/2015. Using self-reported surveys, information was collected regarding OSA-related symptoms including presence and frequency of snoring and apneic events.

Results

The mean±SD age of the study population was 55±14 years, among whom 54% were male, 28% were Black, 51% were Hispanic, and 55% had diabetes. In the overall cohort, 68% of patients reported snoring, among whom 62% reported having frequent (i.e., sometimes, frequent, or always) symptoms. Approximately 17% of patients reported apnea symptoms, among whom 24% reported having frequent events. While over two-thirds of the cohort reported an OSA-related symptom (e.g., snoring, apnea), only 18% were diagnosed with a sleep disorder and 3% had received treatment.

Conclusion

Our findings suggest that clinical features of OSA are common in HD patients, although only a fraction are diagnosed with this disorder and/or undergo treatment for symptoms. Further studies are needed to identify effective OSA screening tools specific to the ESRD population, as well as the impact of OSA interventions in this population.

Funding

  • NIDDK Support