Evidence that the degree of obstructive sleep apnea may not increase myocardial ischemia and arrhythmias in patients with stable coronary artery disease

There is controversy regarding whether obstructive sleep apnea is responsible for triggering myocardial ischemia, arrhythmias and heart rate variability in patients with coronary artery disease. OBJETIVE: The objective of this study was to identify relationships between sleep apnea, myocardial ischemia and cardiac arrhythmia in patients with coronary artery disease. METHODS: Fifty-three patients with stable coronary disease underwent simultaneous polysomnography and electrocardiographic Holter recording. The apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) was defined as the number of apneas/hypopneas per hour of s...