Introduction:
Patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome usually present with changes in upper airway morphology and/or body fat distribution, which may occur throughout life and increase the severity of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome with age.
Objective:
To correlate cephalometric and anthropometric measures with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome severity in different age groups.
Methods:
A retrospective study of cephalometric and anthropometric measures of 102 patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome was analyzed. Patients were divided into three age groups (≥20 and <40 years, ≥40 and <60 years, and ≥60 years). Pearson's correlation was performed for these measures with the apnea-hypopnea index in the full sample, and subsequently by age group.
Results:
The cephalometric measures MP-H (distance between the mandibular plane and the hyoid bone) and PNS-P (distance between the posterior nasal spine and the tip of the soft palate) and the neck and waist circumferences showed a statistically significant correlation with apnea-hypopnea index in both the full sample and in the ≥40 and <60 years age group. These variables did not show any significant correlation with the other two age groups (<40 and ≥60 years).
Conclusion:
Cephalometric measurements MP-H and PNS-P and cervical and waist circumfer- ences correlated with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome severity in patients in the ≥40 and <60 age group.
Sleep apnea syndromes; Cephalometry; Body mass index; Anthropometry; Cervical rib; Obesity