Aims The aims of this study are to (a) detect the effect of
different types of heart diseases [ischemic, cardiomyopathy,
hypertensive heart failure (HF)] on the association with sleep
disorders, and to (b) identify the relationship between
Cheyne–Stokes respiration (CSR) and left ventricular
dysfunction.
Materials and methods In a cross-sectional study involving
100 HF patients, we performed echocardiography and a fullnight
attended polysomnography for all patients.
Results In all, 47.9% of patients with ischemic heart disease
had obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), whereas 37.5% had
central sleep apnea (CSA). OSA was highly prevalent in
patients with hypertensive heart disease (79.2%). On the
other hand, 50.0% patients with dilated cardiomyopathy
(DCM) had CSA, whereas 39.3% had OSA. Patients with
DCM had a significant increase in the central apnea index
(11.05±9.19 events/h), as well cycle length of CSR (68.14
±13.26 s), as compared with other groups. There was an
inverse increase of cycle length with reduction in left
ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) (LVEF≥50% had a cycle
length of 41.55±10.84 s, whereas those with LVEF≤30% had
a longer mean cycle length of 69.23±18.09 s).
Conclusion Sleep-disordered breathing is a common
disorder in different groups of HF. OSA was prevalent in
ischemic and hypertensive heart disease, whereas CSA was
prevalent in DCM. There was a significant increase in cycle
length of CSR with a reduction in LVEF.