- Abstract -

The obstructive sleep apnea has been associated with an increased incidence of hypertension, CVA and cardiovascular disease 1.

The metabolic syndrome is recognized as an association of obesity, glucose-intolerance, dislipidaemia and hypertension.

In the last 70 years a substantial increase of metabolic syndrome prevalence is noticed, increase that that coincides with hightened prevalence of obesity.

The essential significance of this metabolic syndrome is that the association of these risk factors predisposes the patients to an early onset of cardiovascular disease 2.

Key words: sleep apnea, obesity, metabolic syndrome.