Prevalence of Sleep Apnea Syndrome in Patients Complaining of Snoring and/or Sleep Apnea.

Three hundred and ninety-three patients (292 male and 101 female) who visited our clinic complaining of snoring and/or apnea during sleep were evaluated for sleep apnea syndrome (SAS) by Apnomonitor screening. A total of 131 patients (114 male and 17 female) showed an apnea index (A. I.) higher than to apnea episodes/hour, and there was a significant correlation of the A. I. with age, sex, and body mass index (BMI) in these patients. All patients with severe SAS (more than 50 apnea episodes/hour) were men, who had a BMI greater than 25, with the exception of 1 patient. Significantly higher ages and BMI were found to exist in patients with SAS than in those without SAS.