Overall, cardiovascular diseases have many sex-related differences in prevalence, clinical presentation, and outcomes. A considerable amount of evidence suggests that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) increases the risk for several cardiovascular diseases. Only recently, the sex-related differences in cardiovascular outcomes gained interest in the literature. In this review, the authors discuss the current evidence addressing the cardiovascular impact of OSA in women. Particular attention is devoted to hypertension, target-organ damage, heart failure, atrial fibrillation, and cardiovascular events (including mortality). A research agenda is proposed to increase the understanding of the relevance of OSA in women from the Cardiology perspective.
Keywords: Cardiovascular disease; Gender; Sex; Sleep apnea.
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