Sleep-disordered breathing in pregnancy

Abstract

Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) during pregnancy has recently gained medical interest due to its consequences on maternal health and fetal outcome. In fact, although epidemiologic data are still scanty, several reports indicate that snoring and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) during pregnancy are commonly associated with maternal hypertension, morbidly increased body mass index (BMI), diabetes mellitus and, at child birth, are correlated with an increased percentage of C-sections, preterm births with infants small for gestational age (SGA). OSA is an eminently treatable condition by means of assisted nocturnal ventilation with continuous positive air pressure (CPAP) devices. Diagnosis and treatment of this potential pregnancy complication should be thus more aggressively pursued in order to avoid harmful consequences to both mother and child. © 2013 Springer Science+Business Media New York.