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Objectives: (i) To assess the anthropometric measurements, along with the clinical characteristics and quality of life profiles of the studied patients; (ii) To determine the occurrence and severity of Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), using polysomnography; and (iii) To identify the best anthropometric and clinical indicators to predict OSA in obese patients who are candidates for bariatric surgery., Methods: a prospective observational study conducted in a private clinic, using consecutive sampling of patients eligible for bariatric surgery with a BMI ≥ 40, or with a BMI of ≥ 35 kg/m² accompanied by comorbidities associated with obesity., Results: Sixty patients were initially selected, of whom 46 agreed to take part in the preoperative evaluation. OSA was observed in 76% of patients, 59% of whom had moderate-to-severe OSA, with a predominance of men in these groups. Among the variables suggesting statistical difference between groups, waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) was the only clinical factor associated with scores the apnea hypopnea index (AHI) ≥ 15, with a cut-off value of 0.95. The results showed that patients scoring above 0.95 are three times more likely to have moderate-to-severe apnea., Conclusion: The best risk factor for the prognostic of moderate-to-severe OSA was presenting a WHR score with a cut-off value of 0.95 or above.

The inspiratory-to-total lung capacity ratio or "inspiratory fraction" (inspiratory capacity(IC)/total lung capacity (TLC)) may be functionally more representative than traditional indices of resting airflow limitation and lung hyperinflation in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In the present retrospective study, a comparison was made of the individual performance of post-bronchodilator IC, IC/TLC and forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV(1)) in predicting a severely reduced peak oxygen uptake (V'(O(2)); <60% predicted) in 44 COPD patients Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease stages II-III (post-bronchodilator FEV(1) ranging from 31-79% pred). Patients with lower IC/TLC values (

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is currently considered a systemic disease, presenting structural and metabolic alterations that can lead to skeletal muscle dysfunction. This negatively affects the performance of respiratory and peripheral muscles, functional capacity, health-related quality of life and even survival. The decision to prescribe ergogenic aids for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is based on the fact that these drugs can avert or minimize catabolism and stimulate protein synthesis, thereby reducing the loss of muscle mass and increasing exercise tolerance. This review summarizes the available data regarding the use of anabolic steroids, creatine, L-carnitine, branched-chain amino acids and growth hormones in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The advantage of using these ergogenic aids appears to lie in increasing lean muscle mass and inducing bioenergetic modifications. Within this context, most of the data collected deals with anabolic steroids. However, to date, the clinical benefits in terms of increased exercise tolerance and muscle strength, as well as in terms of the effect on morbidity and mortality, have not been consistently demonstrated. Dietary supplementation with substances of ergogenic potential might prove to be a valid adjuvant therapy for treating patients with advanced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, especially those presenting loss of muscle mass or peripheral muscle weakness.