Blood Oxygen Accumulation Distribution Area Index Is Associated With Erectile Dysfunction in Patients With Sleep Apnea-Results From a Cross-sectional Study

Wenzhong Zheng; Xiang Chen; Jingwen Huang; Shengxiong Zhang; Tao Chen; Liu Zhang; Xianxin Li; Qingyun Li; Jican Dai

doi:10.1016/j.esxm.2019.11.001

Blood Oxygen Accumulation Distribution Area Index Is Associated With Erectile Dysfunction in Patients With Sleep Apnea-Results From a Cross-sectional Study

Sex Med. 2020 Mar;8(1):36-44. doi: 10.1016/j.esxm.2019.11.001. Epub 2020 Jan 31.

Authors

Wenzhong Zheng¹, Xiang Chen², Jingwen Huang³, Shengxiong Zhang⁴, Tao Chen⁵, Liu Zhang³, Xianxin Li⁶, Qingyun Li³, Jican Dai⁷

Affiliations

¹ Department of Urology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
² Department of Urology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
³ Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Ruijin Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
⁴ Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Ruijin Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China; Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, The First People's Hospital of Yunnan Province, The Affiliated Hospital of Kunming University of Science and Technology, Yunnan, China.
⁵ Department of Anesthesiology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Guanzhou Medical University, Guanzhou Medical University, Guanzhou, China.
⁶ Department of Surgery, Shenzhen Sun Yat-Sen Cardiovascular Hospital, Shenzhen, China.
⁷ Department of Urology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China. Electronic address: jican_dai@aliyun.com.

Abstract

Introduction: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) has been linked with erectile dysfunction (ED), but the relatively independent polysomnography (PSG) outcomes of apnea and nocturnal hypoxia may not effectively assess the physiological impairment of OSA well.

Aim: To propose a new calculation method, the blood oxygen accumulation distribution area index (BOADAI), for evaluating the association between OSA and ED.

Methods: In this study, 502 male participants with suspected OSA were enrolled. Clinical questionnaire, physical measurements, and PSG outcomes were obtained by 2 respiratory physicians. ED was assessed by a urologist using the International Index of Erectile Function-5 (IIEF-5). Whole pulse oxygen saturation curves during the sleep time were compressed into a fixed scale image, and the distribution area of oxygen saturation curves was outlined. We then calculated the value of the outlined area and normalized it by total sleep time. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator logistic regression model was used for selecting the optimal variable associated with ED and model construction. The clinical net benefit of the BOADAI and its related modules was estimated and compared by decision curve analysis.

Main outcome measure: ED and OSA were assessed using the IIEF-5, clinical questionnaire, physical measurements, and PSG outcomes.

Results: The frequency of ED in patients with OSA was significantly greater than that in the no-OSA group. Meanwhile, the new BOADAI was negatively correlated with the IIEF-5 score (r = -0.2525, P = .0000). Moreover, the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator method retained BOADAI but not the other PSG parameters such as respiratory disorder index and lowest SaO2. Finally, logistic regression analysis revealed that older age, lips with cyanochroia, systemic hypertension, and BOADAI were independently associated with ED, and decision curve analysis indicated the clinical usefulness of the BOADAI module.

Conclusion: This study revealed novel evidence that OSA is a risk factor for ED. Meanwhile, the BOADAI could act as a potential clinical characteristic to evaluate ED in patients with OSA and to provide clinical treatment recommendations. Zheng W, Chen X, Huang J, et al. Blood Oxygen Accumulation Distribution Area Index Is Associated With Erectile Dysfunction in Patients With Sleep Apnea-Results From a Cross-sectional Study. Sex Med 2019; 8:36-44.

Keywords: Blood Oxygen Accumulation Distribution Area Index; Erectile Dysfunction; Lowest Oxygen Saturation; Obstructive Sleep Apnea; Respiratory Disorder Index.