Abstract

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a chronic respiratory illness that affects the upper airways, leading to impairment in the supplementation of oxygen to body tissues, causing hypoxia and fragmented sleep. It is the most frequent type of sleep-disordered breathing. Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is another chronic illness in which the body cells are unable to use glucose. T2DM and OSA share common risk factors, including aging and obesity. Untreated OSA can have a wide range of adverse health consequences, which might exacerbate T2DM severity and associated complications in the case of coexistence with T2DM. This study aimed to assess the prevalence and correlation of OSA with T2DM by reviewing the previous studies concerned with this subject. An exploration of electronic databases using several keywords was carried out to obtain relevant articles. The exploration process was restricted to articles published in 2022 till now. The eligible articles were original articles written in the English language and reported OSA among T2DM patients. Nine articles met the defined criteria and were enrolled. The total number of subjects was 5,510, and high-risk OSA was 16.58%-57.33% among T2DM. OSA risk and prevalence were high among T2DM patients, and the risk and/or prevalence were associated with several factors among T2DM patients. OSA can exacerbate T2DM severity and associated variables such as glycosylated hemoglobin, whereas the management of OSA improves control of T2DM and associated variables. So, early diagnosis and management of OSA is important among T2DM patients to avoid further consequences.

Key words: Obstructive sleep apnea, type 2 diabetes mellitus, prevalence, correlation, risk factors, systematic review