title: The Relationship between Nocturnal Hypoxemia and Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction in Congestive Heart Failure Patients.
abstract: Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a major cause of mortality and morbidity. Among patients with heart failure, sleep disordered breathing (SDB) is a common problem. Current evidence suggests that SDB, particularly central SDB, is more prevalent in patients with CHF than in the general population, but it is underdiagnosed as SDB symptoms that are less prevalent in CHF. The main aims of this study were to determine the relationship between nocturnal hypoxemia and left ventricular ejection fraction in patients with chronic heart failure. By means of echocardiography, 108 patients with left ventricular ejection fraction ≤45% were divided into mild, moderate, and severe CHF. Hypoxemia was recorded overnight in the hospital and was measured by portable pulse oximetry. In the 108 patients with CHF, 44 (40.7%) were severe, 17 (15.7%) moderate, and 47 (43.6%) mild CHF. 95 (88%) of patients with CHF had abnormal patterns of nocturnal hypoxemia suggestive of Cheyne-Stokes respiration. Ejection fraction correlated negatively with dip frequency. There was no correlation between nocturnal hypoxemia with BMI and snoring. This study confirms strong associations between sleep apnea and heart disease in patients with CHF. Overnight oximetry is a useful screening test for Cheyne-Stokes respiration in patients with known heart failure.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Imam Khomeini Hospital, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil 6368134497, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mirzaaghazadeh
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Shohadaye Khalije Fars Hospital, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran.
authors.forename: Mehrzad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bahtouee
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Imam Khomeini Hospital, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil 6368134497, Iran.
authors.forename: Fariba
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mehdiniya
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Imam Khomeini Hospital, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil 6368134497, Iran.
authors.forename: Nasrollah
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-1511-7052
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Maleki
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Shohadaye Khalije Fars Hospital, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran.
authors.forename: Zahra
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Tavosi