Untreated moderate or severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is associated with resistant hypertension among blacks, a recent study found. Between 2012-2016, participants from the Jackson Heart Sleep Study (n=913) underwent an in-home Type 3 sleep apnea study, clinic blood pressure (BP) measurements, and anthropometry. Researchers investigated the association of sleep apnea with uncontrolled BP and resistant hypertension in this population. They found:

• Among the analytic sample with hypertension (n=664; mean age 64.0 years, 69% female, 58.6% obese), 25.7% had OSA, which was untreated in 94% of participants.
• Overall, 48% of participants had uncontrolled hypertension and 14% had resistant hypertension.
• After adjustment for confounders, participants with moderate or severe OSA had 2.0 times higher odds of resistant hypertension.
• OSA and <90% oxyhemoglobin saturation are not associated with uncontrolled BP.