title: Prevalence of obstructive sleep apnoea following head and neck cancer treatment: a cross-sectional study.
abstract: The obstructive sleep apnoea-hypopnoea syndrome (OSAHS) is a sleep-related breathing disorder characterised by repetitive pharyngeal collapse. OSAHS is associated with a reduced quality of life. A high OSAHS prevalence has been reported in patients treated for head and neck cancer (HNC). The aim of the present study was to identify the prevalence of OSAHS within a Dutch population of patients treated for HNC. Consecutive HNC patients with a follow-up of 6 months to 5 years after treatment of an oral or oropharynx carcinoma were eligible for inclusion. Two questionnaires were used to assess the presence of OSAHS-related complaints. Subsequently, polysomnography was used in patients with OSAHS-related complaints to confirm the diagnosis of OSAHS. Four out of 33 included patients were diagnosed with OSAHS, yielding a prevalence of 12%. Since recognition and treatment of OSAHS might play an important role in improving quality of life of HNC patients, we suggest screening all patients with an oral or oropharynx carcinoma for the presence of OSAHS-related complaints prior to and following HNC treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, P.O. Box 30.001, 9700 RB Groningen, The Netherlands. w.nesse@kchir.umcg.nl
authors.forename: Willem
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Nesse
authors.forename: Aarnoud
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hoekema
authors.forename: Boudewijn
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Stegenga
authors.forename: Johannes H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: van der Hoeven
authors.forename: Lambert G M
authors.initials: LG
authors.lastname: de Bont
authors.forename: Jan L N
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Roodenburg
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017286:Polysomnography; D015995:Prevalence; D011788:Quality of Life; D020181:Sleep Apnea, Obstructive / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology