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Effect of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure on Hemoglobin A1c in Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

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Abstract

Background

There is little conclusive data regarding the effect of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) on glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c). An earlier meta-analysis included two randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and found no significant effect of CPAP on HbA1c. The meta-analysis presented here was conducted to include all relevant observational studies and RCTs on the effect of CPAP on HbA1c.

Methods

We searched the PubMed database for all studies published prior to March 2012 for trials of the effect of CPAP on HbA1c. Data from observational studies and RCTs that met the inclusion criteria were extracted for pre- and post-treatment HbA1c.

Results

A total of nine studies that included 151 subjects met the inclusion criteria. The duration of the studies ranged from 41 days to 6 months. The mean net change in the HbA1c was −0.06 % [95 % CI: −0.24, 0.12] (p = 0.5). Five of the nine studies, with a total of 112 subjects, comprised patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) type 2. The mean net change in HbA1c for the subjects with DM type 2 was 0.08 % [95 % CI: −0.26, 0.42] (p = 0.65). The mean net change in HbA1c for subjects with DM type 2 in studies that were at least 3 months in duration was 0.16 % [95 % CI: −0.26, 0.58] (p = 0.45).

Conclusions

This meta-analysis found that CPAP does not reduce HbA1c levels when used in the short term.

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Conflict of interest

The authors report no potential conflicts of interest with any companies/organizations whose products or services may be discussed in this article.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Medicine, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA

    Imran H. Iftikhar

  2. School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Robert P. Blankfield

  3. One Richland Medical Park, Suite 300, Columbia, SC, 29203, USA

    Imran H. Iftikhar

Authors
  1. Imran H. Iftikhar
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  2. Robert P. Blankfield
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Correspondence to Imran H. Iftikhar.

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Iftikhar, I.H., Blankfield, R.P. Effect of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure on Hemoglobin A1c in Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Lung 190, 605–611 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00408-012-9404-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00408-012-9404-x

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