Validity of the new ‘Top End Sleepiness Scale’ against the STOP‐Bang tool in predicting obstructive sleep apnoea among Indigenous Australian adults

Abstract

Background: The validity of the newly developed sleepiness assessment tool, the 'Top End Sleepiness Scale' (TESS), against other established obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) screening tools has not been evaluated. Aims:To compare the utility and validity of the culturally safe and clinically relevant subjective daytime sleepiness assessment tool, the 'TESS' was used among Indigenous Australians against STOP-Bang screening tool for predicting OSA in a regional and remote Indigenous Australian cohort. Methods:The TESS questionnaire, consisting of pictorial representations of six items representing daily activities that would induce daytime sleepiness specific for Indigenous Australians, was assessed for its correlation in predicting moderate to severe OSA according to Apnoea-Hypopnoea Index (AHI, ≥15) against the STOP-Bang screening tool.Results: Eighty Indigenous Australian patients (51% male; mean age 45.1 AE 11.5 years) were included in this study with the majority (n = 70; 88%) having OSA, of which 65 (93%) had an AHI ≥ 15. Area under the curve statistics for overall scores showed no significant difference between TESS or STOP-Bang in the prediction of OSA (P = 0.16). A moderate risk score of TESS (≥3) was superior to STOP-Bang (score 3-4) in sensitivity (84% vs 33%) and specificity (39% vs 30%). The sensitivity for a highrisk score for the STOP-Bang (≥5) was superior to the TESS (≥8; 60% vs 33%), although specificity was comparable (83% vs 91% respectively). Conclusions:The TESS screening tool could be a useful standalone or could be adopted alongside the STOP-Bang OSA screening tools in the clinical assessment of sleep disorders among Indigenous Australians.

Sex differences in pulmonary function parameters among Indigenous Australians with and without chronic airway disease

“…Indigenous people have a higher burden of chronic health conditions, including cardiorespiratory disorders, giving rise to higher morbidity and mortality [33][34][35][36][37]. Understanding the different clinical manifestations [38][39][40] and appropriate interventions [41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50] will help in early diagnosis and management of chronic health conditions in the Indigenous population, for better health related outcomes. Varying manifestations of sex differences in PFTP's have been demonstrated in this study, both with and without underlying radiological evidence of CADs among an Indigenous Australian cohort.…”

Sleep disorders among Aboriginal Australians with Machado-Joseph Disease: Quantitative results from a multiple methods study to assess the experience of people living with the disease and their caregivers

“…Assessment of sleep quality and the range of sleep disorders experienced by Aboriginal Australians in this region is recently emerging. Evidence indicates a high prevalence of OSA associated with all-cause mortality, consistent with the regionally high rates of chronic health conditions ( Heraganahally et al, 2020b , 2021 ). Relatedly, sleep quality and duration have been shown to affect obesity and cardiometric risk factors among the Indigenous Australian population without MJD ( Deacon-Crouch et al, 2020 ; Yiallourou et al, 2021 ).…”

COPD disease knowledge, self-awareness and reasons for hospital presentations among a predominately Indigenous Australian cohort: a study to explore preventable hospitalisation

“…As such, it is plausible that the current study captured anywhere from 40% to 60% of current Indigenous COPD patients in the TEHS region. More recently, several aspects of respiratory health issues among Indigenous Australians from the TEHS region of the NT has been reported in the literature 19–24 28 32 35–40 52–66. Hence, this study could be considered as an important further step forward67 in addressing COPD disease awareness and knowledge in an Indigenous population.…”