A Close Correlation between Sleep Apnea Syndrome and Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease: An Interdisciplinary Outpatient Retrospective Study in Southern Italy GERDOSA

The following clinical study analyzes the multiparametric data of a Caucasian, obese population affected by sleep apnea syndrome and gastroesophageal reflux disease (total of 200 patients) enrolled between November 2020 and July 2023 within two private outpatient facilities located in Reggio Calabria; and diagnosed by nocturnal cardiorespiratory monitoring and laryngoscopy. The study shows that the association between the two pathologies and their prevalence in the obese population is increasingly frequent in recent decades. The statistical analysis of the multiparameter data was carried out through simple linear regression with obtaining the p values for single parameters, obtaining statistically significant data with reference to AHI, NBI score and ESS score. The study shows how the progressive reduction of the AHI over 24 months is contextual to the improvement of the ESS score which correlates with the day and night symptoms of the sleep pathology; furthermore, during these months a reduction in the endoscopic score of gastroesophageal reflux disease was found. The limitations of the study are related to the small sample examined and also related to the uncollected follow-up data in terms of adherence to OSA therapy.