The Effect of Multilevel Surgery for Obstructive Sleep Apnea on Fatigue, Stress and Resilience

Objective: To evaluate the effects of surgical treatment on fatigue, stress, and resilience in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

Methods: Sixty patients who underwent multilevel sleep surgery for OSA (OSA group) and 32 non-OSA participants (control group) were recruited at a university hospital in Korea between January 2020 and March 2022. Fatigue, stress, and resilience levels were evaluated in both groups using the Chalder fatigue scale (CFS), daily hassles scale revised (DHS-R), and Connor-Davidson resilience scale (CD-RISC), respectively. The scores of each group were compared before and 6 months after surgery.

Results: The initial CFS and DHS-R scores were significantly higher, while the CD-RISC score was significantly lower, in the OSA group than in the control group (p < 0.05). In the patients with OSA, all three scores significantly improved after surgery (p < 0.05). Additionally, when compared between the groups at 6 months, there were no differences in the CFS, DHS-R, or CD-RISC scores (p > 0.05). Even when the OSA group was divided into a success group and a failure group according to surgical outcomes and compared with the control group, the three scores of both groups did not show statistical differences from the control group (p > 0.05).

Conclusions: Multilevel surgery may reduce fatigue as well as stress and increase resilience in patients with OSA to levels similar to those in non-OSA individuals.