The differences between the subtypes of obstructive sleep apnea among different provinces in Turkey: a multicenter study.

Purpose: Our aim in this study is to investigate the significance and implications of different clinical subtypes of patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) in three different sleep centers from varied provinces.

Methods: Between January 2023 and November 2024, 330 patients from three sleep centers (Adana, Gaziantep, and Istanbul) were retrospectively examined for age, gender, body mass index (BMI), polysomnography parameters, sleep stages, arousals, oxygen parameters, heart rates, apnea-hypopnea indexes (AHI) and snoring.

Results: OSAS patients of Gaziantep were fat and severe OSAS patients who slept lightly but efficiently at lower oxygen levels with longer durations. They fell into Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep quickly. The number of hypopneas is high. OSAS patients of Adana sleep deeply, frequently wake after sleep onset, and snore less. The number of obstructive apnea is high. OSAS patients of Istanbul sleep efficiently but snore a lot. REM oxygen saturation, oxygen desaturation index (ODI) levels, and the average heart rate were high in Istanbul. The number of central and mixed apneas is high.

Conclusions: Sleep patterns and oxygen measurements varied among clinical subtypes of patients with OSAS, as well as among provinces. Understanding regional or subtype-specific OSAS could alter practice because treatment can be planned according to the severity of OSAS.