OSCA

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    Obstructive Sleep Apnoea and Cardiac Arrhythmias

  • IRAS ID

    252447

  • Contact name

    Faizel Osman

  • Contact email

    faizel.osman@uhcw.nhs.uk

  • Sponsor organisation

    UHCW NHS Trust

  • Duration of Study in the UK

    4 years, 6 months, 1 days

  • Research summary

    This prevalence trial looking at how sleep apnoea affects the heart especially heart rhythms and comparing it to standard care.

    Previous research shows that patients suffering from sleep apnoea are much more likely to get heart disease and abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias). These defects are sometimes missed by the traditional methods of monitoring i.e. 24-hour Holter monitor and ECGs. This means potentially dangerous arrhythmias may not be detected. Additionally, we know standard therapy for sleep apnoea does not significantly reduce the risk of heart disease.

    This study will recruit 200 participants over a period of 18 months. We will observe the heart rhythms of sleep apnoea patients. One group will have an implantable loop recorder (ILR) in up to 100 participants. This device will monitor the heart continuously for 3 years allowing us to detect abnormal heart rhythms and treat as necessary. The second group of 100 participants will simply have standard treatment.

    If we can demonstrate the increased rate of arrhythmias we can treat attempt to treat these. This can lead onto a larger study which can look at the possibility of reducing their risk of heart disease. We will also look at other markers of heart disease such as; blood tests, Magnetocardiography and Echocardiography to see if we can shed more light on the mechanisms which link sleep apnoea and heart disease/arrhythmia.

  • REC name

    West Midlands - Solihull Research Ethics Committee

  • REC reference

    19/WM/0129

  • Date of REC Opinion

    18 Jun 2019

  • REC opinion

    Further Information Favourable Opinion