Population prevalence of obstructive sleep apnoea in a community of German third graders

Abstract

We aimed to estimate the population prevalence of obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) in an urban community of German third graders (age range 7.3-12.4 yrs) and the diagnostic test accuracy of two OSA screening methods.Using a cross-sectional study design with a multi-stage sampling strategy, 27 out of 59 primary schools within the city limits of Hanover, Germany, were selected. 1,144 third graders were screened for symptoms and signs of OSA using questionnaires and nocturnal home pulse oximetry. 183 children underwent abbreviated nocturnal home polysomnography (OSA definition: apnoea/hypopnoea index o1) and 22 were diagnosed to suffer from OSA.In general, sensitivity for both screening methods was low (,0.6), while specificity was moderately high (mostly .0.7). Independent predictors for OSA were body mass index, history of allergy, a composite questionnaire score, and two oximetry-based criteria. Based on these variables and logistic regression, a prediction model (accuracy; 95% confidence interval: 0.86; 0.71-0.94) was constructed and applied to children who had not successfully undergone polysomnography. This resulted in nine additional OSA cases and an overall design-adjusted population prevalence (95% confidence interval) of 2.8% (1.5-4.1%).Clinical and oximetry findings may be helpful for screening and predicting OSA in primary school children.

Primary snoring in school children: prevalence and neurocognitive impairments

“…This has to be taken into account in the analysis. In addition, unbalanced selection and response proportions within strata and clusters had occurred [23]. That means that the probability for individuals being in the final study sample was different among strata and clusters.…”

“…This study had a complex sampling procedure comprising two stages, stratification, and cluster sampling [15,23]. The two stages were: (1) first stage, schools were selected from a list of all eligible schools and (2) second stage, individuals were sampled from selected schools (i.e.…”

Effects of rapid maxillary expansion and mandibular advancement on upper airways in Marfan’s syndrome children: a home sleep study and cephalometric evaluation

“…Obstructive sleep apnea may be one of the most frequent chronic respiratory diseases in primary school children; there are clinical symptoms and oximetry findings that may be helpful to detect OSA in this population, and for this reason, unattended polysomnography should be used for screening purposes [29]. Table 3 Independent t test comparing the mean changes in airway dimensions (in millimeters) between MFS and CTR groups after RME (T1-T0), after PUL therapy (T2-T1), and after the combined effects of RME and PUL therapy (T2-T0) T1-T0 T2-T1 T2-T0 MFS From a clinical point of view, our findings support the rationale of early RME and functional mandibular advancement implementation in patients at risk for OSA presenting the typical features of class II skeletal malocclusion, such as MFS children.…”

From the authors:

“…We thank D. Finn and P. McNally for their comments on our recent publication in the European Respiratory Journal [1].…”

“…Mohapatra and D.T. Hari for their interest in our article, which predicts the public health improvements of switching from an 8-month standardised regimen (2HRZE/6HE; where H5isoniazid, R5rifampicin, Z5pyrazinamide and E5 ethambutol) to a 6-month rifampicin containing standardised regimen (2HRZE/4HR) for the treatment of tuberculosis [1].…”