Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome and Type II Diabetes Mellitus in the Elderly

Older people with sleep disturbances also have other chronic pathologies that may interfere with these disturbances. One of the comorbidities that is frequently present is type II diabetes. Objetives: This research aims to find out whether type 2 diabetes mellitus present in elderly people affects the level of severity of obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS). Methods: Cross-sectional descriptive study, with a sample of 75 elderly people who attended the Sleep Unit of Doctor Sagaz Hospital in Jaen to be diagnosed with OSAS, and classified according to severity. Results: Significant differences were obtained in the severity of OSAHS between the participants who had type II diabetes mellitus and those who did not, with the former showing higher scores (U=326, p=0.02). Conclusions: Therefore, the presence of type 2 diabetes in the el-derly in our study was associated with more severe OSA. The main discrepancies when compar-ing this research with other studies result from the lack of research addressing these variables in this population group, as well as from the great heterogeneity of methods and techniques used in the different studies (different sample sizes, age range of the population, and diagnostic methods used), causing great variability in the results found. Given the findings obtained in this research, we hope to contribute to future translational research and improve the quality of life of this population.