title: Sleep-disordered breathing among acute ischemic stroke patients in Brazil.
abstract: Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is very common in acute stroke patients and has been related to poor outcome. However, there is a lack of data about the association between SDB and stroke in developing countries. The study aims to characterize the frequency and severity of SDB in Brazilian patients during the acute phase of ischemic stroke; to identify clinical and laboratorial data related to SDB in those patients; and to assess the relationship between sleep apnea and functional outcome after six months of stroke.
  
  
  
  Clinical data and laboratorial tests were collected at hospital admission. The polysomnography was performed on the first night after stroke symptoms onset. Functional outcome was assessed by the modified Rankin Scale (mRS).
  
  
  
  We prospectively evaluated 69 patients with their first-ever acute ischemic stroke. The mean apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) was 37.7 ± 30.2. Fifty-three patients (76.8%) exhibited an AHI ≥ 10 with predominantly obstructive respiratory events (90.6%), and thirty-three (47.8%) had severe sleep apnea. Age (OR: 1.09; 95% CI: 1.03-1.15; p= 0.004) and hematocrit (OR: 1.18; 95% CI: 1.03-1.34; p= 0.01) were independent predictors of sleep apnea. Age (OR: 1.13; 95% CI: 1.03-1.24; p= 0.01), body mass index (OR: 1.54; 95% CI: 1.54-2.18; p= 0.01), and hematocrit (OR: 1.19; 95% CI: 1.01-1.40; p= 0.04) were independent predictors of severe sleep apnea. The National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS; OR: 1.30; 95% CI: 1.1-1.5; p= 0.001) and severe sleep apnea (OR: 9.7; 95% CI: 1.3-73.8; p= 0.03) were independently associated to mRS >2 at six months, after adjusting for confounders.
  
  
  
  Patients with acute ischemic stroke in Brazil have a high frequency of SDB. Severe sleep apnea is associated with a poor long-term functional outcome following stroke in that population.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil. Electronic address: millene.camilo@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Millene R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Camilo
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil.
authors.forename: Saul V
authors.initials: SV
authors.lastname: Schnitman
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil.
authors.forename: Heidi H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Sander
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil.
authors.forename: Alan L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Eckeli
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil.
authors.forename: Regina M F
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Fernandes
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil.
authors.forename: Joao P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Leite
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University Hospital-Inselspital, Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Claudio L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Bassetti
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil.
authors.forename: Octavio M
authors.initials: OM
authors.lastname: Pontes-Neto
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001938:Brazil; D005260:Female; D006400:Hematocrit; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D017286:Polysomnography / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012891:Sleep Apnea Syndromes / Q000150:complications*; D020521:Stroke / Q000150:complications*
keywords: Acute cerebral infarction; Functional outcome; Sleep; Sleep apnea; Sleep-disordered breathing; Stroke