Sarcopenia and Hypoxia in Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Objectives. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is associated with a variety of health issues. Both OSA and sarcopenia are associated with metabolic disorders; however, there is limited literature assessing the correlation between them. Therefore, we aimed to investigate sarcopenia using temporal muscle thickness (TMT) in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and the association between sarcopenia and hypoxia. Methods. We enrolled patients with OSA and healthy controls. Both groups underwent brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, including three-dimensional T1-weighted imaging. TMT, a marker for sarcopenia, was obtained based on the T1-weighted imaging and compared between the groups. Additionally, we analyzed the correlation between TMT and clinical factors in patients with OSA. Results. In total, 40 patients with OSA and 52 healthy controls were evaluated. There was no difference in TMT between patients with OSA and healthy controls (10.425 ± 2.13 vs. 10.400 ± 1.94 mm, p = 0.953). In the correlation analysis, age was negatively correlated with TMT (r = −0.356, p = 0.023), and lowest oxygen saturation (r = −0.558, p < 0.001) in patients with OSA. Conclusion. Our results demonstrated negative correlations between TMT and lowest oxygen saturation in the patients with OSA. These findings suggest potential relationships between sarcopenia and hypoxia in patients with OSA. Thus, these results underline the importance of maintaining oxygen saturation in patients with OSA by implementing active treatment. This study also demonstrates the feasibility of sarcopenia assessment by measuring TMT through conventional head MRI in patients with various neurological disorders.