According to a study in Respirology, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is an independent predictor of high lipid levels.
The analysis showed a strong association between higher total cholesterol, lower high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), higher low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), elevated triglycerides, and several measures of OSA severity in the study of patients enrolled in the European Sleep Apnea Database.
There was a dose-response relationship between total cholesterol and oxygen desaturation index — mean±SE (mg/dL): 180.33±2.46, 184.59±2.42, 185.44±2.42, and 185.73±2.44; P<0.001 across oxygen desaturation index (ODI) quartiles I-IV.
“As a clinical implication of our findings, clinicians should be aware of the association between OSA and dyslipidemia,” the team wrote.
