Upon evaluating the prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in patients with retinal vein occlusion (RVO), a team of French researchers found a high rate of OSA, which they note is likely a risk factor associated with RVO.

This prospective study evaluated 69 RVO patients and 45 healthy controls. All participants completed a questionnaire and underwent testing to analyze sleep patterns and detect respiratory events. In addition, patients with RVO were administered OSA screening.

The team notes that OSA was suspected in 73.9% of the RVO group and 63% of the control group based on the questionnaire, 22% in the RVO group and 4.3% in the control group according to the Epworth Sleepiness Scale and 82.6% in the RVO group and 55.6% in the control group as determined by the RUSleeping device. Multivariate logistic regression analysis confirmed the association between RVO and OSA. The researchers found that all RVO patients exhibited signs of OSA and diagnosed 91.5% with moderate-to-severe OSA (moderate in 22% and severe in 69.5% of patients).