Oral findings as predictors of obstructive sleep apnea- A case-control study

Objective

To evaluate the role of dental parameters that may contribute to increasing apneic activity in patients with or without obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

Materials and Method

The study comprises a total of 120 patients (60 diagnosed with sleep apnea visiting a sleep center at Delhi and 60 controls). Patients were assessed based on body mass index, age, neck circumference, and gender (BANG), which were recorded for both the patients and controls. Oral and general examination was carried out using predetermined criteria for Angle's class of malocclusion, maxillary arch constriction, facial profile, Mallampati score for uvula, tongue size, depth of palatal vault, mouth breathing, and periodontitis.

Results

Among 120 study subjects, 92 were males and 28 females, with a mean age of 49.08 + 13.13 years in the study group and 45.28 + 14.78 years in the control group. All the variables except Angle's class of malocclusion, periodontitis, mouth breathing, and hypertension showed significant differences in the study group. Multivariate analysis for patients with OSA revealed that obese patients were almost 1.5 times more possibly to report OSA symptoms than their non-obese counterparts. It was also found that patients with OSA were 4.12 times more likely to have neck circumference >40 cm, 2.25 times more likely to have maxillary arch constriction, 1.43 times deeper palatal vault, 8.7 times macroglossia, and 1.7 times class III & IV Mallampati score for uvula.

Conclusion

The oral structural findings appear to be more closely related with OSA.