EPIDEMIOLOGY OF SLEEP-DISORDERED BREATHING

Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is a syndrome characterized by freque nt episodes of obstructed breathing during sleep, associated with oxyg en desaturation, sleep fragmentation, and symptoms of loud snoring and sleepiness, This syndrome has been recognized with increasing frequen cy in both general and clinical populations, Estimates of its prevalen ce vary according to the definitions and monitoring approaches used to identify SDB, The overall prevalence of the syndrome is thought to va ry from minimal estimates of 2% to upper levels that exceed 50%, Preva lence is particularly high in certain subgroups: males, obese individu als, those with underlying comorbidities (cardiovascular disease, cere brovascular disease, metabolic abnormalities, etc.), people with a fam ily history of sleep apnea, and those with anatomic compromise of thei r upper airway SDB also varies markedly with age, with marked increase s in SDB with older age, The high prevalence of the syndrome, in conju nction with a myriad of associated health effects, suggests that SDB m ay contribute to substantial morbidity in the population.