Study of Haematocrit Level in Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome

Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome can lead to oxyhaemoglobin desaturation and has the possibility of stimulating erythropoiesis, leading to an increased haematocrit. The aim of this study is to identify the level of haematocrit in obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) patients and to determine the correlation between haematocrit levels and the severity of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). This is a descriptive cross-sectional study at Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia. All consented patients were interviewed and underwent a polysomnography (PSG) study. The severity of OSAS was based on the apnea–hypopnea index (AHI) and average oxygen desaturation. The blood haematocrit level was also obtained. Thirty-six OSAS patients were in the study group, and 17 patients were in the control group. The mean haematocrit level in the control group was 41.6 (2.5 SD), whereas in the study group the mean haematocrit level was 44.0 (3.27 SD). Pearson correlation analysis showed there was no significant correlation between AHI and haematocrit level (p-value: 0.392), however, there is a significant correlation between haematocrit levels and average oxygen saturation level (P-value: 0.022). The independent t-test between mean haematocrit level between OSAS group and control group showed that there was a significant difference between the mean haematocrit level among the control and OSAS groups. The increased level of haematocrit is significantly correlated with average oxygen desaturation but not with AHI in OSAS patient. Average oxygen desaturation can be considered as a parameter to assess severity and hypoxic stress in OSA patients.