"This is a reposting in response to an email I received from a reader and correspondence recently published in Neurology in response to the following article."
polysomnography = a diagnostic sleep study that assesses multiple parameters, hence the term poly.
METHODS: Apnea-hypopnea (AHI) and central apnea indices (CAI) from laboratory-based PSG among 48 MSers were compared with those of group A, 84 sleep laboratory-referred patients without MS matched for age, gender, and body mass index; and group B, a separate group of 48 randomly selected, referred patients.
- Apnea = absence of breathing; this can be due to central or peripheral problems.
- Central apnea = failure of the autonomic breathing pacemaker in the brainstem to fire
- Obstructive apnea = refers to obstruction of airflow despite attempts to breath. This usually occurs from obstruction in the back of the throat.
- hypopnea = reduced breathing
RESULTS: Mean AHI was higher among MSers than among control groups A or B (2-way analysis of variance and multiple linear regression, p = 0.0011 and 0.0118, respectively). Median and mean CAI were also increased among MSers in comparison to control groups (Wilcoxon signed rank and multiple linear regression, p = 0.0064 and 0.0027, respectively). Among MSers with available data, those with evidence of brainstem involvement, compared with groups A and B, showed particularly robust differences in AHI (p = 0.0060 and 0.0016) and CAI (p = 0.0215 and <0.0001). In contrast, MSers without brainstem involvement, compared with groups A and B, showed diminished differences in AHI, and CAI did not significantly differ among groups.
CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest a predisposition for obstructive sleep apnea and accompanying central apneas among MSers, particularly among those with brainstem involvement.
Beran et al. Sleep-disordered breathing in multiple sclerosis.Neurology. 2013 Apr 2;80(14):1354-5.