The Syndrome of Sleep Apnea in the Elderly Suffering from COPD and Live in the County of Attica, Greece

INTRODUCTION: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and obstructive sleep apnea syndrome are two diseases, which often coexist in one person. The sleep apnea is often caused by an interruption to breath when sleeping, due to an obstruction of the upper airway during inhalation, causing chronic snoring, morning headaches, increased body weight, blood pressure and sleepiness during the day. AIM: The purpose of this study is to investigate the extend of this problem among a large group of elderly people living in the Attica Basin. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Material of the study was 500 people aged 70 and above years old, including 274 men and 226 women. Data collection was facilitated with the use of an anonymous questionnaire with the purpose to identify patients with apnea, after a personal interview with the researcher. Data analysis was performed with the use of the statistical package SPSS 17. RESULTS: Based on their responses to the questionnaires, it was found that 98.0% of the participants have abnormal sleepiness during the day. The 35.4% of them show no apnea, while 36.0% of the sample suffer from mild sleep apnea. It is important though, the fact that about one out of three seniors, 28.6%, shows sleep apnea in a high risk level. CONCLUSIONS: COPD is a complex disease that occurs in a large proportion of the elderly. Emphasis should be given on early diagnosis and treatment of sleep apnea syndrome, in order to improve the quality of the elderly life.