Women with partial upper airway obstruction are not less sleepy than those with obstructive sleep apnea.

PURPOSE: Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) differs between genders in terms of the type, signs, and symptoms of the disease. Partial upper airway obstruction is underdiagnosed and undertreated.

METHODS

In this study, we retrospectively investigated respiratory sleep recordings of 601 women, ending up with 240 women for the final statistical analyses. We hypothesized that there are differences between the signs and symptoms of sleep-disordered breathing whether women had partial upper airway obstruction or obstructive sleep apnea.

RESULTS

The results showed no difference in sleepiness between women with partial upper airway obstruction or obstructive sleep apnea. Also, the other main symptoms of SDB were the same between the groups. Micrognathia was more common in women with partial upper airway obstruction than with obstructive sleep apnea.

CONCLUSION

These results indicate that partial upper airway obstruction in women should be clinically recognized like obstructive sleep apnea.