Association between obstructive sleep apnea and health-related quality of life in untreated adults: a systematic review

Purpose: The objective of this systematic review was to answer the question: "Is there association between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in untreated adults?"

Methods: We included observational studies that evaluated the health-related quality of life of patients with OSA vs control groups, through generic and disease-specific questionnaires. The searches were conducted in six databases: Embase, Lilacs, PsycINFO, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Additional search in the grey literature and hand search were performed, and also experts were consulted. Risk of bias was performed by using Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal Checklist for cross-sectional, cohort, and case-control studies. We analyzed the data using a narrative synthesis. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation evidence profile was used to verify the overall certainty of the assessed evidence.

Results: Nineteen studies were included for qualitative analysis. Generic questionnaires showed worse HRQoL in the OSA group compared to the control group in at least one domain of the HRQoL questionnaires. The affected domains that showed statistical and clinically relevant differences were physical functioning, physical role, pain, general health, vitality, emotional role, and mental health. The certainty of evidence assessment was very low.

Conclusion: The available literature suggests that OSA in untreated adults is associated with worse HRQoL. However, this association seems to disappear when we consider only studies adjusted for related covariates.

Registration: CRD42018114746.