The relationship between obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome and gastroesophageal reflux disease: a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) means apnea and hypopnea caused by partial or complete obstruction of upper airway collapse during sleep. Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is believed to be associated with various manifestations in the otorhinolaryngology and has been found to be an additional risk factor for OSAHS. AIM: A meta-analysis was performed to identify the association between obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome and gastroesophageal reflux disease. METHODS: To identify eligible original articles, we searched a series of computerized databases, including Medline via PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and CNKI with a systematic searching strategy. The characteristics of each article and pooled odds ratios (ORs) with corresponding confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated and subgroup analysis was performed to analyze the source of heterogeneity. RESULTS: A total of 2699 patients from seven articles were included in the meta-analysis. We identified a significant relationship between obstructive sleep apnea syndrome and gastroesophageal reflux disease, with a pooled OR of 1.75 (95% CI 1.18–2.59, P < 0.05). The pooled data was calculated under the random-effects model as a significant moderate heterogeneity was found among the meta-analysis. CONCLUSIONS: The meta-analysis showed that there was a significant correlation between obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome and gastroesophageal reflux disease.