Prolonged Sleep Apnea in Two Patients with a History of Opium Abuse -A Case Report

Hadi Asadpour; Seyede Maryam Naghibi; Sadegh Rahimi; Amir Sharafkhaneh; Lahya Afshari Saleh; Fariborz Rezaee Talab; Mahnaz Amini; Faezeh Nikzad

doi:10.22038/ijorl.2020.41832.2365

Prolonged Sleep Apnea in Two Patients with a History of Opium Abuse -A Case Report

Iran J Otorhinolaryngol. 2020 Mar;32(109):127-131. doi: 10.22038/ijorl.2020.41832.2365.

Authors

Hadi Asadpour¹, Seyede Maryam Naghibi², Sadegh Rahimi³, Amir Sharafkhaneh⁴, Lahya Afshari Saleh⁵, Fariborz Rezaee Talab⁶, Mahnaz Amini⁷, Faezeh Nikzad²

Affiliations

¹ Fellowship of Sleep Medicine, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
² Psychiatrist, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
³ Neuroscience Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran, and Department of Pharmacology, Medical University Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria.
⁴ Department of Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, VAMC Sleep Center, Houston, TX.
⁵ Occupational Medicine, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
⁶ Department of Neurological Diseases, School of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
⁷ Lung Disease Research Center, School of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.

Abstract

Introduction: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a highly prevalent sleep-disordered breathing (SDB).

Case report: Two 53- and 51-year-old male cases with daytime sleepiness and opium abuse and severe sleep apnea and long respiratory events duration (200 and 275 seconds respectively) noted in polysomnography were reported at Ebn-e-Sina and Razavi hospitals, in Mashhad, Iran. After positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy respiratory events resolved and patients' daytime alertness improved.

Conclusion: The long duration of sleep apnea could be the result of opium abuse. Therefore, drug history should be carefully considered in the evaluation of SDB patients. The PAP device was effective in the management of sleep respiratory events and the improvement of patient's complications.

Keywords: Microarousal; Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA); Opium; Sleep Apnea; Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB).

Publication types

Case Reports