ABSTRACT
Obstructive sleep apnea [OSA] is the most common sleep-related breathing disorder and is associated with significant morbidity. We sought to present an updated systematic review of the literature on the accuracy of screening questionnaires for OSA against polysomnography [PSG] as the reference test. Using the main databases [including Medline, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and Scopus] we used a combination of relevant keywords to filter studies published between January 2010 and April 2017. Population-based studies evaluating the accuracy of screening questionnaires for OSA against PSG were included in the review. Thirty-nine studies comprising 18 068 subjects were included. Four screening questionnaires for OSA had been validated in selected studies including the Berlin questionnaire [BQ], STOP-Bang Questionnaire [SBQ], STOP Questionnaire [SQ], and Epworth Sleepiness Scale [ESS]. The sensitivity of SBQ in detecting mild [apnea-hypopnea index [AHI] >/= 5 events/hour] and severe [AHI >/= 30 events/hour] OSA was higher compared to other screening questionnaires [range from 81.08% to 97.55% and 69.2% to 98.7%, respectively]. However, SQ had the highest sensitivity in predicting moderate OSA [AHI >/= 15 events/hour; range = 41.3% to 100%]. SQ and SBQ are reliable tools for screening OSA among sleep clinic patients. Although further validation studies on the screening abilities of these questionnaires on general populations are required