Background

Because obesity is a risk factor for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), OSA has been studied as a condition significant to patients undergoing bariatric surgery. Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) is the gold standard of OSA treatment, and compliance in the perioperative period is important. This study sought to identify how adjusting the preoperative work up to include CPAP compliance would improve knowledge about patient CPAP use and affect outcomes.

Methods

Retrospective analysis was performed of patients with a preexisting diagnosis of OSA who underwent bariatric surgery at a single center during an 18 month period. After 12 months, documentation of CPAP compliance was added to the preoperative work up, dividing patients into a study group with documentation and a control group without. Information analyzed included OSA severity, CPAP machine ownership, apnea-hypopnea index (AHI), CPAP compliance, and perioperative outcomes.

Results

180 patients diagnosed with OSA underwent surgery during the study period, 63 (35%) of whom were in the documentation group. There was no significant difference in baseline characteristics or post operative outcomes between the groups. The intervention group had a mean AHI of 28.1, and 82.6% of the patients owned a CPAP machine. CPAP compliance was documented in 36 of the 63 patients with a median compliance of 50%.

Conclusions

The addition of CPAP evaluation in the preoperative work up for bariatric surgery patients with OSA did not significantly impact knowledge of CPAP compliance or perioperative outcomes, but it did show an overall poor CPAP compliance in our patient population.