Obstructive sleep apnea
AHI events / hour
Airway collapse in sleep that stops or shallows breathing. Hours in bed are a different clock.
The object is obstruction. A lab scores events per hour when it needs a number. A CPAP machine holds the airway open. That is a treatment of the obstruction, not a longer night. Sleep duration and regularity live on the sleep page. Apnoea and apnea are the same word.
Also called OSA, OSAS, OSAHS, obstructive sleep apnoea.
Connected relationships
Randomized trial · Moderate
Obstructive sleep apnea→Cognitive performance
A rise in Obstructive sleep apnea does not identify a change in Cognitive performance.
Xu 2025 assigned 148 middle-aged adults with moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea and normal cognition to CPAP plus usual care or usual care alone. At six months the Montreal Cognitive Assessment did not differ (difference -0.04, 95% CI -0.72 to 0.65).
Randomized trial · Moderate
Obstructive sleep apnea→Major cardiovascular events
A rise in Obstructive sleep apnea does not identify a change in Major cardiovascular events.
McEvoy 2016 found that CPAP plus usual care did not change the risk of a composite cardiovascular event versus usual care alone among 2717 adults with moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea and established coronary or cerebrovascular disease (hazard ratio 1.10, 95% CI 0.91 to 1.32).
Randomized trial · Moderate
Obstructive sleep apnea→Insulin resistance (HOMA-IR)
Higher Obstructive sleep apnea increases Insulin resistance (HOMA-IR).
In 80 adults with severe OSA and morbid obesity, 12 weeks of CPAP improved two-hour glucose versus conservative care. HOMA-IR did not change in that trial. Pooled CPAP trials later found a modest HOMA-IR drop versus sham or no machine.
Randomized trial · Moderate
GLP-1 receptor agonist→Obstructive sleep apnea
Higher GLP-1 receptor agonist decreases Obstructive sleep apnea.
In two 52-week trials of adults with obesity and moderate-to-severe sleep apnea, weekly tirzepatide cut the apnea-hypopnea index by about 20 to 24 events per hour versus placebo (Malhotra, Grunstein, Fietze 2024).
Sources
- H Xu et al. (2025). Effects of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure on Neuroimaging Biomarkers and Cognition in Adult Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
- ML Wang et al. (2021). Cognitive Effects of Treating Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.
- A Durtette et al. (2024). Impact of continuous positive airway pressure on cognitive functions in adult patients with obstructive sleep apnea: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
- RD McEvoy et al. (2016). CPAP for Prevention of Cardiovascular Events in Obstructive Sleep Apnea.
- Y Peker et al. (2017). Effect of Positive Airway Pressure on Cardiovascular Outcomes in Coronary Artery Disease Patients with Nonsleepy Obstructive Sleep Apnea. The RICCADSA Randomized Controlled Trial.
- M Sánchez-de-la-Torre et al. (2020). Effect of obstructive sleep apnoea and its treatment with continuous positive airway pressure on the prevalence of cardiovascular events in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ISAACC study): a randomised controlled trial.
- N Salord et al. (2016). A Randomized Controlled Trial of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure on Glucose Tolerance in Obese Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea.
- V Patruno et al. (2007). Fixed and autoadjusting continuous positive airway pressure treatments are not similar in reducing cardiovascular risk factors in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.
- D Yang et al. (2013). The impact of effective continuous positive airway pressure on homeostasis model assessment insulin resistance in non-diabetic patients with moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea.
- IH Iftikhar et al. (2013). Meta-analysis: continuous positive airway pressure improves insulin resistance in patients with sleep apnea without diabetes.
- IH Iftikhar et al. (2016). Meta-analyses of the Association of Sleep Apnea with Insulin Resistance, and the Effects of CPAP on HOMA-IR, Adiponectin, and Visceral Adipose Fat.
- R Abud et al. (2020). Efficacy of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) preventing type 2 diabetes mellitus in patients with obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) and insulin resistance: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
- W Shang et al. (2021). Benefits of continuous positive airway pressure on glycaemic control and insulin resistance in patients with type 2 diabetes and obstructive sleep apnoea: A meta-analysis.