Background: obstructive sleep apnea is a chronic and highly prevalent disorder that
is considered to be a true public health problem. The sleep disturbance pattern related to
obstructive sleep apnea negatively influences the stress system and hence increases the
vulnerability of obstructive sleep apnea patients to anxiety and depression. Aim: Assess the
psychological health status in geriatric patients with obstructive sleep apnea. Method:
Descriptive research design was used in this study. This study was conducted in the
outpatient clinic of the Chest Medicine Department at Main Mansoura University Hospital.
A purposive sample of 100 geriatric patients with obstructive sleep apnea was enrolled in
the study. Data was collected using 3 tools; Geriatric Patient's Demographic characteristics
and Clinical Data Sheet, hospital anxiety and depression scale, and Epworth Sleepiness
Scale. Results: The mean score of anxiety was 12.03±3.76 and depression was 9.16±2.86
with 80.0% of the studied elders had anxiety and 64.0% had depression. In addition, a
strong positive correlation was found between obstructive sleep apnea severity and anxiety
and depression (P=0.001*). Conclusion: Anxiety and depression were common
psychological problems in geriatric patients with obstructive sleep apnea.
Recommendation: Implementation of an intervention program for nursing staff about
problems faced in caring for patients with obstructive sleep apnea to help them to provide
optimal care and early screening of psychological problems in order to prevent further
deterioration