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The impact of obstructive sleep apnea on high-sensitivity C-reactive protein in subjects with or without metabolic syndrome

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Abstract

Background

It is unclear whether obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is independently associated with increased levels of the acute-phase reactant C-reactive protein (CRP). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between OSA and high-sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP) levels according to the presence or absence of metabolic syndrome (MetS).

Methods

This study recruited 245 male bus drivers from one transportation company in Taiwan. Each participant was evaluated by a polysomnography (PSG) test, blood lipids examination, and hs-CRP. Severity of OSA was categorized according to the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI).

Results

Subjects were categorized into severe OSA group (n = 44; 17.9 %), moderate and mild OSA group (n = 117; 47.8 %), and non-OSA group (n = 84; 34.3 %). AHI had a significant association with hs-CRP (β = 0.125, p = 0.009) adjusting for age, smoking, drinking, and MetS status. Hs-CRP was elevated with severe OSA (β = 0.533, p = 0.005) even adjusting for BMI and MetS. Moreover, there was an independent effect for adjusted odds ratios (AORs) between the stratification of the severity for OSA and MetS.

Conclusion

Elevated hs-CRP level is associated with severe OSA, independent of known confounders. The effect of OSA in CRP is independent of MetS was identified.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the administrators and drivers from the bus company for their participation and cooperation. This study was partly supported by the National Health Research Institutes of Taiwan (98-EO-PP01, 99-EO-PP01, and 100-EO-PP01) and the Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH96-M102 and IOSH97-M102), Taiwan. The funder had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Conflicts of interest

None of the authors have any potential, perceived, or real conflicts of interest.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Environmental Health and Occupational Medicine, National Health Research Institutes, 35 Keyan Road, Zhunan Town, Miaoli County, 35053, Taiwan, Republic of China

    Wei-Te Wu, Trong-Neng Wu & Saou-Hsing Liou

  2. Graduate Institute of Life Sciences, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan

    Su-Shan Tsai

  3. Institute of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health, Ministry of Labor, Taipei, Taiwan

    Tung-Sheng Shih & Ming-Hsiu Lin

  4. Department of Public Health, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan

    Tung-Sheng Shih, Tzu-Chieh Chou & Saou-Hsing Liou

  5. Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan

    Hua Ting

  6. Center of Sleep Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan

    Hua Ting

  7. Department of Nursing, Hungkuang University, Taichung, Taiwan

    Trong-Neng Wu

  8. Department of Public Health, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan

    Saou-Hsing Liou

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  1. Wei-Te Wu
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Wu, WT., Tsai, SS., Shih, TS. et al. The impact of obstructive sleep apnea on high-sensitivity C-reactive protein in subjects with or without metabolic syndrome. Sleep Breath 19, 1449–1457 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-015-1166-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-015-1166-2

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