Obstructive Sleep Apnoea: A Shrouded High-Risk Association for Development of Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy.

Background: This objective of this study was to diagnose Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA) in pregnant women using Questionnaire-based methods and to determine any association of Sleep-Disordered Breathing (SDB) with Hypertensive Disorder of Pregnancy (HDP). Additionally, the study aimed to identify factors associated with OSA.

Methods: This case-control study was conducted in department of Obstetrics in tertiary care hospital in Delhi. We Identified SDB using Berlin Questionnaire and Modified Stop-Bang Questionnaire in 100 pregnant women with Hypertension and 100 normotensive controls. We compared the groups using appropriate statistical analysis.

Results: The mean age of women with HDP (25.46 ± 4.38) was found to be slightly higher than controls (24.13 ± 3.89) (p value-0.02). Sleep apnoea as depicted by the presence of either high-risk STOP Bang or Berlin score was seen more often in hypertensive women in 45% as compared to controls in 8% (p value < 0.001). Higher pre-pregnancy weight (58.58 ± 9.77 vs. 53.0 ± 6.59), higher BMI (24.03 ± 5.89 vs. 20.68 ± 1.49), higher mean neck circumference (14.97 vs. 14.27 inches) weight gain more than 11 kg during pregnancy (55.6% vs. 38.2%) were the high-risk factors more commonly associated with SDB as seen in women with OSA in hypertensive women. On logistic regression analysis, the presence of OSA was singularly responsible for development of Hypertension (Odds Ratio-13.014, 95% CI 5.237-32.337) (p value < 0.001).

Conclusion: Gestational hypertension appears to be strongly associated with the presence of obstructive sleep apnoea. The recognition and treatment of OSA during pregnancy may lead to improved outcomes.