Sex Differences in Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Sunita Kumar; Andreea Anton; Carolyn M D'Ambrosio

doi:10.1016/j.ccm.2021.04.004

Sex Differences in Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Clin Chest Med. 2021 Sep;42(3):417-425. doi: 10.1016/j.ccm.2021.04.004.

Authors

Sunita Kumar¹, Andreea Anton², Carolyn M D'Ambrosio³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep, Loyola University Medical Center and Stritch School of Medicine, 2160 South First Avenue, Building 54, Maywood, IL, USA.
² Department of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, Medical College of Wisconsin, Zablocki VA Medical Center, 8500 West Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee, WI 53226, USA.
³ Harvard-Brigham and Women's Hospital, Fellowship in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis Street PBB CA-3, Boston, MA 02115, USA. Electronic address: cdambrosio@bwh.harvard.edu.

PMID: 34353448
DOI: 10.1016/j.ccm.2021.04.004

Abstract

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) for many years has been thought to be a disease of men, but research performed more recently has revealed women are at significant risk for OSA as well as the morbidity associated with leaving it untreated. There are estimates that up to 90% of women with severe sleep apnea are not being diagnosed and that if diagnosed, they are less likely to be treated. This article will explore the sex differences in OSA, specifically addressing areas of prevalence, phenotypes, diagnostic criteria, and treatment.

Keywords: CPAP; Endotype; Gender; Obstructive sleep apnea; Phenotype; Polysomnogram; Sex.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Continuous Positive Airway Pressure
Female
Humans
Male
Phenotype
Sex Characteristics*
Sleep Apnea, Obstructive* / diagnosis
Sleep Apnea, Obstructive* / epidemiology
Sleep Apnea, Obstructive* / therapy