BACKGROUND: Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is a common disease. The objective of this research was to determine the effectiveness of a graduated walking program in reducing the apnea-hypopnea index number in patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). METHODS: A randomized controlled clinical trial with a two-arm parallel in three tertiary hospitals was carried out with seventy sedentary patients with moderate to severe OSAS. Twenty-nine subjects in each arm were analyzed by protocol. The control group received usual care, while usual care and an exercise program based on progressive walks without direct supervision for 6 months were offered to the intervention group. RESULTS: The apnea-hypopnea index decreased by six points in the intervention group, and improvements in oxygen desaturation index, total cholesterol, and Low-Density Lipoprotein of Cholesterol (LDL-c) were observed. A higher decrease in sleep apnea-hypopnea index (45 +/- 20.6 versus 34 +/- 26.3 /h; p = 0.002) was found in patients with severe versus moderate OSAS, as well as in oxygen desaturation index from baseline values (43.3 versus 34.3/h; p = 0.046). Besides, high-density lipoprotein of cholesterol (HDL-c) values showed a higher increase in the intervention group (45.3 versus 49.5 mg/dL; p = 0.009) and also, a higher decrease in LDL-c was found in this group (141.2 versus 127.5 mg/dL; p = 0.038). CONCLUSION: A home physical exercise program is a useful and viable therapeutic measure for the management of OSAS.

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