Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate gender differences of periodic limb movements during sleep (PLMS) in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
Methods: This was a case-control study recruiting 364 patients with OSA (182 men, 182 women) matched for age and apnea-hypopnea index (AHI). All participants underwent overnight polysomnography (PSG), followed by the multiple sleep latency test (MSLT) and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS).
Results: Women with OSA had a significantly higher prevalence of PLMS than men (24.2 vs. 15.9 %, p < 0.05). Women with OSA showed an increased prevalence of PLMS compared to men in the younger group aged ≤55 years (23.0 vs. 10.6 %, p < 0.05), but not in the older groups >55 years (25.3 vs. 21.6 %, p > 0.05). Binary linear regression analysis in OSA patients confirmed that women were more likely to have PLMS than men (OR 1.71, 95 % CI 1.00-2.92), particularly in patients with age ≤55 years old (OR 2.48, 95 % CI 1.06-5.79), after adjusting for age, BMI, AHI, and habits of smoking and drinking.
Conclusions: The results demonstrate that, for patients with OSA, young women had significantly increased prevalence of PLMS compared to young men, but there was no difference in prevalence of PLMS between the men and women in the older age group.
Keywords: Age; Gender difference; Obstructive sleep apnea; Periodic limb movements; Prevalence.