Sleep Disordered Breathings in Patients with Stabilised Stroke – A Case Control Study

Aim of the study : In order to characterise sleep disordered breathing (SDB) in patients with stable stroke, a prospective observational study is ongoing in Rome. We report the results of the first 55 cases studied. Methods : A consecutive series of patients with acute stroke, admitted to the stroke unit of two different Roman University Hospitals, were screened. Participants were submitted to both clinical and instrumental evaluations at stroke onset and then at 4 months. The diagnostic tests included polisomnographyc (PSG) study and brain MRI. SDB, either central or obstructive, was diagnosed in presence of an apnoea/hypopnoea index (AHI) value ≥5. Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS version 18.0 for Windows. Comparisons were done by ϰ2 tests or via Fisher’s exact test depending on which was more appropriate. Correlations were done with non-parametric tests (Spearman’s rho). Statistical significance was set at p<0.05. Results : Fifty-five PSG studies were performed. Forty-two cases (76.4 %) had a SDB. Twenty-eight out of the 42 (67 %) cases with an