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Sleep apnoea severity in males tied to racial DNA?
Author: Jonathan Warren
A new study has concluded that the severity of obstructive sleep apnoea in the US is generally higher for those of an African-American background, and in certain age ranges, even in the face of a variety of results for body mass index (BMI).
The research, conducted by Wayne State University School of Medicine in Detroit and Medical Director of the Detroit Receiving Hospital Sleep Disorders Center, found that an African-American man below the age of 40 increased his apnoea-hypopnea index (AHI) by 3.21 breathing pauses per hour of sleep, if the comparison is with a Caucasian man in the same age range with the same BMI.
Meanwhile, participants between 50 and 59 experienced much the same trend - being African-American increased AHI by 2.79 breathing events per hour of sleep on the same scale. Interestingly, however, there was no difference in AHI between African-American women and white females.
"The results show that in certain age groups, after correcting for other demographic factors, the severity of sleep apnoea as measured by the apnoea-hypopnea index is higher in African-American males than Caucasian males," said James Rowley, the study’s senior investigator and professor of medicine at the Michigan institution.
