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Respiratory system
Respiratory system
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Obesity hypoventilation syndrome (OHS)

Definition:

Obesity hypoventilation syndrome (OHS) is a condition related to obstructive sleep apnea in which a very obese person does not breathe a sufficient amount of oxygen during sleep or while awake.



Alternative Names:
Pickwickian syndrome

Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

The cause of OHS in unknown, but it is likely to involve a combination of a disorder of the brain's control over breathing and the effects of massive obesity on the chest wall. With the excess weight of massive obesity, the muscles of the chest wall can have difficulty expanding the thorax enough to exchange air efficiently.

This results in a decreased ability to oxygenate the blood and retention of carbon dioxide (see respiratory acidosis). Affected individuals suffer from chronic fatigue. This is from sleep loss, poor sleep quality, as well as chronichypoxia (decreased blood oxygen).

Morbid (massive or excessive) obesity is the main risk factor.



Review Date: 1/26/2002
Reviewed By: David A. Kaufman, M.D., Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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