How to approach sleep disordered breathing in heart failure patients

Minerva Med. 2016 Jun;107(3):140-61. Epub 2016 Mar 10.

Abstract

Sleep disordered breathing (SDB) is a major public health problem and is highly prevalent in patients with heart failure (HF) disease. In these patients, a thorough pre-test probability evaluation and appropriate selection of overnight sleep study should be performed before treatment evaluation. A high index of suspicion for SDB should exist when an HF patient presents with the associated clinical features or risk factors for SDB. With a high index of suspicion, polysomnography (PSG), as a gold standard, is able to confirm or rule out the disease; however, portable monitoring devices may also be appropriate and represent more cost effective diagnosis strategies to confirm the diagnosis in adequately selected patients among a HF cohort. The choice of treatment largely depends on the type and severity of SDB demonstrated by validated sleep recording. The treatment of OSA in HF with CPAP is well established, while the optimal treatment of CSA still to be defined.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Algorithms
  • Heart Failure / complications
  • Humans
  • Risk Factors
  • Sleep Apnea Syndromes / complications
  • Sleep Apnea Syndromes / diagnosis*
  • Sleep Apnea Syndromes / epidemiology
  • Sleep Apnea Syndromes / therapy*