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Effects of continuous positive airway pressure on glycemic control and insulin resistance in patients with obstructive sleep apnea: a meta-analysis

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Abstract

Background

Previous studies addressing the question of whether continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) could improve the insulin resistance and glucose control in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) have led to conflicting results. Therefore, we conducted the meta-analysis to evaluate the effects of CPAP on glycemic control and insulin resistance in OSA patients.

Methods

We searched PubMed, HighWire Press, Ovid Medline (R), Cochrane library, and EMBASE before December 2011 on original English language studies. The meta-analysis was conducted using Review Manager Version 5.

Results

The summary estimate for mean difference of homeostasis model assessment insulin resistance (HOMA) from 12 non-diabetic studies was −0.55 (95 % CI, −0.91 to −0.20; P = 0.002). When compared with fasting blood glucose at baseline, 3 to 24 weeks of CPAP treatment did not improve glycemic control in non-diabetic subjects (−0.12; 95 % CI, −0.3 to 0.06; P = 0.20), as well as in diabetic subjects (−0.71; 95 % CI, −2.24 to 0.83; P = 0.37). There were no intervention-related changes in body mass index.

Conclusions

Our analysis showed that CPAP significantly improved insulin resistance in non-diabetic patients with moderate to severe OSA, while no significant change in body mass index was detected. Compared with fasting blood glucose at baseline, there was no change in glycemic control with CPAP. Further large-scale, randomized, and controlled studies are needed to evaluate the longer treatment and its possible effects on weight loss and glycemic homeostasis.

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Declaration of interest

The authors have no relevant interest to declare. This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease, Fuwai Hospital, National Center for Cardiovascular Diseases, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100037, China

    Dan Yang, Zhihong Liu & Qin Luo

  2. Computer Center, Taizhou Hospital of Zhejiang Province, Wenzhou Medical College, Taizhou, 317000, China

    Haixing Yang

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  1. Dan Yang
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Correspondence to Zhihong Liu.

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Yang, D., Liu, Z., Yang, H. et al. Effects of continuous positive airway pressure on glycemic control and insulin resistance in patients with obstructive sleep apnea: a meta-analysis. Sleep Breath 17, 33–38 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-012-0680-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-012-0680-8

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