Obstructive sleep apnea in general surgery patients: is it more common than we think?
BACKGROUND
To determine the risk of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in preoperative surgical patients.


METHODS
Three hundred seventy-one new patients presenting to an outpatient general surgery clinic were prospectively screened for risk of OSA using the STOP-Bang questionnaire. Patients were classified as high risk with a score of >3 on the STOP-Bang questionnaire. Polysomnography results were reviewed when available.


RESULTS
Complete questionnaires were available on 367 (98.9%) patients. Two hundred thirty-seven patients (64.6%) were classified as high risk of OSA on the questionnaire. Polysomnography results available on 49 patients revealed severe OSA in 17 (34.5%), moderate in 8 (16.5%), mild in 14 (28.5%), and no OSA in 10 (20.5%) patients. The positive predictive value and sensitivity of the questionnaire were 76%, and 92% for the STOP-Bang questionnaire, respectively. The sensitivity increased to 100% for severe OSA.


CONCLUSIONS
Preoperative screening for OSA should be considered to diagnose patients at risk.
Department of Surgery, Loyola University Medical Center, 2160 S First Ave, Maywood, IL 60153, USA.
Gaurav V
GV
Kulkarni
Department of Surgery, Loyola University Medical Center, 2160 S First Ave, Maywood, IL 60153, USA.
Anne
A
Horst
Department of Surgery, Loyola University Medical Center, 2160 S First Ave, Maywood, IL 60153, USA.
Joshua M
JM
Eberhardt
Department of Medicine, Loyola University Medical Center, 2160 S First Ave, Maywood, IL 60153, USA.
Sunita
S
Kumar
Department of Surgery, Loyola University Medical Center, 2160 S First Ave, Maywood, IL 60153, USA. Electronic address: ssarker@lumc.edu.
Sharfi
S
Sarker
D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening; D008875:Middle Aged; D017286:Polysomnography; D011300:Preoperative Care; D012306:Risk; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D020181:Sleep Apnea, Obstructive / Q000175:diagnosis*; D013514:Surgical Procedures, Operative; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
Obstructive sleep apnea; Preoperative evaluation; STOP-Bang