PAP Adherence Lowers ER Visits 24-36% in 1 Year for People with Sleep Apnea and Heart Failure: ResMed Studies Presented at SLEEP

(image: KobizMedia/ Korea Bizwire)

INDIANAPOLIS, June 8 (Korea Bizwire) — People with heart failure and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) can significantly reduce hospitalizations and ER visits as well as related costs by being adherent on positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy, according to two studies supported by ResMed (NYSE: RMD, ASX: RMD) and presented at SLEEP 2023.

Key Results
One retrospective study showed people with OSA and systolic heart failure and adherent to PAP had 24% fewer ER visits and incurred 40% lower costs related to hospitalizations and ER visits over 1 year ($3,500 vs. $5,879) compared to non-adherent patients. The study analyzed 1,472 people, exactly half adherent on PAP, half non-adherent.

The second retrospective study showed people with OSA and diastolic heart failure and adherent to PAP had 36% fewer ER visits, 57% fewer hospitalizations, and incurred 18% lower related costs (an average $12,732 vs. $15,610) over 1 year. This study analyzed 1,926 people, again exactly half adherent on PAP, half non-adherent. It also found that converting a non-adherent PAP user in this study to an adherent one would save them an average 1.25 visits.

The studies hold significant implications for managing heart failure patients, since 76% of them also have sleep apnea.¹

“Since 3 out of 4 people with heart failure also have sleep apnea,¹ these findings underscore the significant role PAP treatment plays in keeping people healthy and out of the hospital,” said Fatima Sert Kuniyoshi, MSc, PhD, lead author and ResMed clinical research director. “I hope this leads to a greater emphasis on PAP prescription and monitoring for the sake of patients as well as the hospitals and ERs that would otherwise require added beds and resources to care for them.”

Also from SLEEP: 200 million women have mild OSA
ResMed supported 10 abstracts presented this week at SLEEP 2023, including a global multi-study analysis that estimated over 200 million women worldwide have mild obstructive sleep apnea. That’s equal to 13.4% of women ages 30-70 – or over 1 in 8.

The study’s abstract points out that while PAP treatment is beneficial in treating mild OSA, the key to optimizing health outcomes is first diagnosing it – particularly in women: “Females with OSA tend to be milder than their male counterparts, with lower AHIs, less oxygen desaturations, and different symptoms such as fatigue and insomnia. [Therefore], females with mild OSA are at risk of being underdiagnosed and undertreated.”

Overall, an estimated 936 million people worldwide have sleep apnea, ranging from mild (5-14 apneic events per hour) to severe (over 30 per hour).²

About ResMed
At ResMed (NYSE: RMD, ASX: RMD) we pioneer innovative solutions that treat and keep people out of the hospital, empowering them to live healthier, higher-quality lives. Our digital health technologies and cloud-connected medical devices transform care for people with sleep apnea, COPD, and other chronic diseases. Our comprehensive out-of-hospital software platforms support the professionals and caregivers who help people stay healthy in the home or care setting of their choice. By enabling better care, we improve quality of life, reduce the impact of chronic disease, and lower costs for consumers and healthcare systems in more than 140 countries. To learn more, visit ResMed.com and follow @ResMed.

1 Oldenburg O et al. Eur J Heart Fail 2007
2 Benjafield AV et al. Lancet Respir Med 2019