title: Usefulness of cephalometry in sparing polysomnography of patients with suspected obstructive sleep apnea.
abstract: The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the contribution of cephalometry to a statistical model integrating clinical, physical, and oximetric variables, to reduce demands for polysomnographies. Two hundred and twenty-five consecutive patients that had been referred to the sleep clinic for suspected obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) were studied. The clinical assessment of all patients consisted of a sleep related questionnaire, the Epworth sleepiness scale, and a physical examination. In addition, they all underwent spirometry, cephalometry, and a full polysomnography. The clinical variables related with OSA were questions concerning witnessing of apneas by bed partners, intensity of snoring, a history of hypertension, and nocturia. A significant relation was also found with score on the Epworth scale, sex, age, body mass index, neck and waist circumferences, total number and frequency of oxygen desaturations, and the lowest oxygen saturation value. Significant cephalometric measurements were: the linear distance from gonion to gnathion, from the hyoid bone to the mandibular plane, and from the posterior nasal spine to the tip of the soft palate, and the thickness of the uvula as well. A statistical model was built to estimate a patient's probability of having OSA based on clinical variables, physical examination, pulse oximetry, and cephalometry. The validation of this model demonstrated a remarkable ability in reducing the number of polysomnographic studies. We conclude that cephalometry combined with clinical variables, physical examination, and nocturnal oximetry is useful in the diagnosis of OSA and enables the sparing of a considerable number of polysomnographies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Dr. Negrín Hospital, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria University, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain. jjulser@gobiernodecanarias.org
authors.forename: Gabriel
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Julià-Serdà
authors.forename: Gregorio
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pérez-Peñate
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Saavedra-Santana
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ponce-González
authors.forename: José Manuel
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Valencia-Gallardo
authors.forename: Raquel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rodríguez-Delgado
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cabrera-Navarro
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000886:Anthropometry; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002508:Cephalometry / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005260:Female; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010100:Oxygen / Q000097:blood; D010808:Physical Examination; D017286:Polysomnography / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012016:Reference Values; D020181:Sleep Apnea, Obstructive / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D013030:Spain; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D019564:Unnecessary Procedures / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
chemical_list: D010100:Oxygen