Detecting sleep apnoea syndrome in primary care with screening questionnaires and the Epworth sleepiness scale

Abstract

Objective: To examine the utility of apnoea screening questionnaires, alone and in combination with the Epworth sleepiness scale (ESS), for detecting obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) in primary care. Design, setting: Prospective validation study in an Australian general population cohort. Participants: 424 of 772 randomly invited Tasmanian Longitudinal Health Study, 6th decade follow-up participants with OSA symptoms (mean age, 52.9 years; SD, 0.9 year) who completed OSA screening questionnaires and underwent type 4 sleep studies. Main outcome measures: Clinically relevant OSA, defined as moderate to severe OSA (15 or more oxygen desaturation events/hour), or mild OSA (5–14 events/hour) and ex..