Obstructive Sleep Apnea (osa) Is a Common Disorder in Which Recurrent Sleep Relat- Ed Upper Airway Obstruction Causes Sleep

1075 Ethnic Difference in OSA Risk Factors—Lee et al OBSTRUCTIVE SLEEP APNEA (OSA) IS A COMMON DISORDER IN WHICH RECURRENT SLEEP RELATED UPPER AIRWAY OBSTRUCTION CAUSES SLEEP fragmentation and intermittent hypoxemia. Ethnicity has been suggested as an important risk factor for OSA. However, defining the role of ethnicity is complex, as it incorporates genetic, environmental, and cultural factors that can, individually or in combination, influence the other recognized risk factors for OSA. Whilst earlier prevalence studies suggest that OSA may be more common in certain ethnic groups,1,2 recent data in Hong Kong Chinese,3 Indians4 and Koreans5 suggest that OSA prevalence in these ethnic groups are not dissimilar to the Caucasian populations.6 Obesity and craniofacial factors are well recognized in the pathogenesis of OSA. It is also becoming clear that the balance and interaction between these two risk factors is crucial in the development of OSA.7,8 It is likely that such interaction is strongly influenced by ethnicity. Cephalometric studies have suggested that craniofacial factors are important determinants of OSA risk in Asian cohorts.9-11 Similarly, studies evaluating the role of obesity suggest that whilst it is a consistent risk factor for OSA across ethnic groups, the risk attributable to obesity differs between racial groups.3,6 Despite suffering from a similar degree of OSA, patients from Asian groups are generally less overweight compared to their Caucasian counterparts, suggesting that ethnicity may differentially influence the attribution of these OSA risk factors. To date, studies that have explored these complex interactions remain limited, especially in a direct inter-ethnic comparison. Hence the aim of this study was to explore the differences in craniofacial structures and obesity between Caucasian and Chinese patients with OSA.