Ultrasonographic characteristics of intracranial and extracranial atherosclerosis lesion in patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndromes / 中华超声影像学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective:To investigate the distribution characteristics of atherosclerosis in patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndromes (OSAS) by ultrasonography and explore the differences of intracranial and extracranial atherosclerosis lesions.Methods:From July 2016 to July 2019, 139 patients with OSAS confirmed by the department of neurology and/or respiratory of Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University were enrolled retrospectively. According to the results of polysomnography (PSG), patients were divided into 3 groups mild degree (53 cases), moderate degree (35 cases) and severe degree (51 cases). Demographic parameters, distribution and the severity of atherosclerosis both in intracranial and extracranial arteries, and the incidence of ischemic stroke were compared among the three groups.Results:①Among 139 OSAS patients, there were more males (64.7%) than females (35.3%). Of all the risk factors for cerebrovascular diseases, the prevalence of hypertensin was the highest (50.4%), followed by hyperlipidemia (48.9%). The prevalences of hypertension and ischemic stroke, the body mass index (BMI) in severe OSAS group were higher than those in mild group (all P<0.017). ②The total detection rate of extracranial atherosclerosis (83.5%) was significantly higher than that of intracranial atherosclerosis (23.0%)( P<0.01). ③The extracranial atherosclerotic lesion with highest detection rate of was simple plaque formation (51.1%, 71/139 cases), and there was no significant difference in extracranial lesions among the three groups ( P=0.106). However, with the aggravation of OSAS degree, the stenosis degree of extracranial artery increased ( P=0.006), and there was a weak correlation between the severity of OSAS and the degree of extracranial artery stenosis ( r s=0.263, P=0.002). ④The incidence of middle cerebral artery stenosis accounted for 15.8%(22/139 cases) of intracranial arteries involved and there were no significant differences in the rate, degree and distribution of intracranial artery lesions among the three groups (all P>0.05). Conclusions:The detection rate of extracranial arterial lesions in OSAS patients is higher. With the aggravation of OSAS, the degree of atherosclerosis stenosis in extracranial arteries and the incidence of ischemic stroke trend to increase.