title: Association of severe obstructive sleep apnea and elevated blood pressure despite antihypertensive medication use.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  We hypothesized that untreated severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is associated with elevated ambulatory blood pressure (BP) in subjects with high cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk despite medical management.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data from the baseline examination of the Heart Biomarker Evaluation in Apnea Treatment (HeartBEAT) study, a 4-site randomized controlled trial were analyzed. Individuals with moderate-severe OSA (apnea hypopnea index, AHI = 15-50) and cardiovascular risk were recruited from cardiology practices. Those with hypertension were included. Intensive antihypertensive regimen (IAR) was defined as ≥ 3 antihypertensives including a diuretic. Definitions were: controlled BP (BP < 130/80), uncontrolled elevated BP (BP ≥ 130/80 not on IAR) and resistant elevated BP (BP ≥ 130/80 mm Hg despite IAR). Associations of untreated severe OSA (AHI ≥ 30) and uncontrolled and resistant elevated BP were evaluated using logistic regression analyses adjusted for age, sex, race, body mass index, smoking status, diabetes, and CVD.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among the 284 participants (mean age 63.1 ± 7.2 years, 23.6% with severe OSA), 61.6% had controlled BP, 28.5% had uncontrolled elevated BP, and 9.9% had resistant elevated BP. Among participants prescribed IAR, resistant elevated BP was more prevalent in those with severe compared to moderate OSA (58.3% vs. 28.6%, p = 0.01). Participants with severe OSA had a 4-fold higher adjusted odds of resistant elevated BP (OR 4.1, 95% CI: 1.7-10.2), a finding not reproduced in the absence of IAR use.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Among patients with increased cardiovascular risk and moderate to severe OSA, untreated severe compared to moderate OSA was associated with elevated BP despite IAR suggesting untreated severe OSA contributes to poor BP control despite aggressive medication use.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A commentary on this article appears in this issue on page 845.
authors.affiliation: Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH;
authors.forename: Harneet K
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Walia
authors.affiliation: Center for Clinical Investigation, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH;
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA;
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rueschman
authors.affiliation: Brigham and Women's Hospital Heart & Vascular Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
authors.forename: Deepak L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Bhatt
authors.affiliation: Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA; ; Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA;
authors.forename: Sanjay R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Patel
authors.affiliation: Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA;
authors.forename: Stuart F
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Quan
authors.affiliation: Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA; ; VA Boston Healthcare System, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA;
authors.forename: Daniel J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Gottlieb
authors.affiliation: Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD.
authors.forename: Naresh M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Punjabi
authors.affiliation: Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA; ; Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA;
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Redline
authors.affiliation: Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH;
authors.forename: Reena
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mehra
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000959:Antihypertensive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D020181:Sleep Apnea, Obstructive / Q000150:complications*; D017211:Treatment Failure
chemical_list: D000959:Antihypertensive Agents
keywords: blood pressure; cardiovascular disease; sleep apnea