Hematologic Markers as a Predictive Factor for Moderate to Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome in Children and Adolescents

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: We conducted this study to evaluate the diagnostic value of hematologic markers for moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). METHODS: We performed the study using medical records from our sleep disorders center. We collected information regarding obstructive apnea-hypopnea index (oAHI), age, sex, body mass index, and complete blood counts with differential counts [white blood cell (WBC) count, neutrophil count, lymphocyte count, red blood cell distribution width (RDW), mean platelet volume, platelet count, platelet distribution width (PDW), neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio, and platelet-lymphocyte ratio]. We excluded patients who were younger than 2 years, older than 14 years, obese/underweight, and those who had a hematologic or severe medical illness. RESULTS: We assessed records from 57 patients (7.98±3.25 years old, 35 men). We classified the subjects into three groups based on their oAHI scores, as follows normal (oAHI < 1), mild OSAS (1≤oAHI < 5), and moderate/severe OSAS (oAHI≥5). Using a multivariate multinomial logistic regression model (pseudo R²=0.33), we found significant differences among the groups in RDW [moderate/severe OSAS vs. mild OSAS, adjusted odds ratio (OR) 8.77, p-value 0.03], PDW (mild OSAS vs. normal, adjusted OR 1.05, p-value 0.04), and WBC (moderate/severe OSAS vs. normal, adjusted OR 1.42, p-value 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: RDW, PDW, and WBC had diagnostic value for moderate/severe OSAS in our study. Further prospective and validation studies are required to develop a screening tool for moderate/severe OSAS in children and adolescents.