Objective: The objective of the study was to evaluate the first night effect (FNE) on sleep architecture and respiratory parameters of adolescent patients with suspected obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS).
Materials and Methods: A retrospective investigation was made of a total of 88 patients (51 males and 37 females, mean age 15.52±1.30 years, range 13–17 years) applied with polysomnography (PSG) because of suspected OSAS between March 1, 2016, and August 31, 2019. PSG was applied on two consecutive nights. The presence of OSAS was evaluated separately on the two consecutive nights and diagnostic accuracy was compared.
Results: When the patients were investigated in respect of sleep architecture, there was seen to be a significant difference between the two nights in the values of total sleep time (min) (p=0.001), time in bed (min) (p=0.001), sleep latency (min) (p=0.001), and rapid eye movement (REM) latency (min) (p<0.001), and the FNE was seen to have an effect on the REM percentage (p=0.001). No statistically significant difference was determined in the non-REM sleep parameters between the two nights. In the patient-based examination, two patients with borderline apnea/hypopnea index values and evaluated as normal on the first night were diagnosed as mild OSAS on the second night, and one patient diagnosed with moderate OSAS on the first night was diagnosed with severe OSAS on the second night.
Conclusion: There was seen to be a significant FNE on the sleep parameters of the adolescent age group, and in the evaluations made in respect of the respiratory parameters, the second night PSG examination can be considered useful, especially in patients with borderline values.