Table 1. Baseline Characteristics of All Patients.
| Characteristic | Patients, No. (%) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| All patients (N = 156) | Treated by physician (n = 75) | Treated by alternative care practitioner (n = 81) | |
| Male | 112 (71.8) | 54 (72.0) | 58 (71.6) |
| Age, mean (SD), y | 56 (12) | 55 (13) | 54 (12) |
| Respiratory event index, mean (SD), events/h | 52 (28) | 55 (29) | 51 (28) |
| Nocturnal oxygen saturation by pulse oximetry, mean (SD), % | 85 (5) | 86 (5) | 85 (5) |
| Smoking status | |||
| Active smoker | 33 (21.2) | 13 (17.3) | 20 (24.7) |
| Former smoker | 65 (41.7) | 31 (41.3) | 34 (42.0) |
| Nonsmoker | 58 (37.2) | 31 (41.3) | 27 (33.3) |
| Pack-years of smoking, mean (SD) | 28 (23) | 26 (22) | 31 (21) |
| Body mass index, mean (SD)a | 39 (10) | 39 (9) | 40 (10) |
| Treatment typeb | |||
| Continuous positive airway pressure | 123 (78.8) | 59 (78.7) | 64 (79.0) |
| Bilevel positive airway pressure | 18 (11.5) | 6 (8.0) | 11 (13.6) |
| Oxygen | 7 (4.5) | 8 (10.7) | 11 (13.6) |
| No therapy | 8 (5.1) | 6 (8.0) | 4 (4.9) |
| Comorbidity | |||
| Hypertension | 96 (61.5) | 47 (63.7) | 49 (60.5) |
| Diabetes | 42 (26.8) | 21 (28.0) | 21 (25.9) |
| Cardiovascular disease | 31 (19.9) | 16 (21.3) | 15 (18.5) |
| Chronic lung disease | 39 (25.0) | 16 (21.3) | 23 (28.4) |
| Chronic kidney disease | 5 (3.2) | 5 (6.7) | 0 |
| Epworth Sleepiness Scale score, mean (SD) | 10 (6) | 11 (6) | 11 (5) |
| Sleep Apnea Quality of Life Index score, mean (SD) | 5 (1) | 4.6 (1.3) | 4.5 (1.4) |
| Health Utilities Index Mark 2 score, mean (SD) | 0.7 (0.2) | 0.68 (0.3) | 0.73 (0.18) |
| Health Utilities Index Mark 3 score, mean (SD) | 0.6 (0.3) | 0.56 (0.32) | 0.59 (0.31) |
a
Body mass index is calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared.
b
Percentages for treatment type may sum to greater than 100% because some patients used oxygen in addition to continuous positive airway pressure or bilevel positive airway pressure.