Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Hypertension in Adolescents: Effect on Neurobehavioral and Cognitive Functioning

Background. There are limited published data in regard to the relationship between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and hypertension and neurobehavioral and mental status in adolescence. The aim of our study was to evaluate neurobehavioral patterns and cognitive functions in adolescents with hypertension according to absence or presence of OSA. Methods. This was a retrospective cohort study completed at the Scientific Center for Family Health and Human Reproduction Problems. Participants included adolescents aged 14–17 years and referred for 24-hour ambulance blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) and polysomnographic (PSG) studies between 2007 and 2009, inclusive. Results. 18 hypertensive OSA (the 1st group) and 20 hypertensive non-OSA adolescents (the 2nd group) were included in the study. Significant changes of neurobehavioral functioning in OSA patients were shown. Cognitive abilities also were impaired. Verbal and visual memory indexes and attention index were 2.1 and 2.2 times lower, accordingly, in the 1st group than in the 2nd group (P < 0.05). Speech index was significantly 2.8 times lower in OSA patients than in non-OSA patients (P < 0.05). In hypertensive OSA adolescents more significant Spearman correlations between classic sleep parameters and cognitive measures were found compared to patients without OSA. Conclusions. These results suggest that OSA is closely associated with neurobehavioral and cognitive functioning in hypertensive adolescents.