IMPORTANCE OF BERLIN, STOP, AND STOP-BANG QUESTIONNAIRES IN EVALUATING OBSTRUCTIVE SLEEP APNEA SYNDROME IN THE BUS DRIVERS

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) symptoms in public transportation drivers, and the importance of the Berlin questionnaire (BQ), STOP questionnaire (SQ), and STOP-BANG questionnaire (SBQ) in OSAS screening, and the to evaluate correlations among these tests. Material and Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted after obtaining ethics committee approval. Demographic data and risk factors were categorized as high-risk and low-risk for snoring and OSAS. Results: All the drivers (n:392) were men and their mean age was 37.8 +/- 6.3(27-58). Even in the presence of any of the individual parameters of snoring, witnessed apnea, and increased daytime sleepiness in 392 drivers, a high risk was found in all for questionnaires developing OSAS (p<0.001). Body mass index >= 30 kg/m(2) and neck circumference >= 40 cm were associated with snoring (p<0.05) but not with age (p>0,05). The highest agreement was found between SQ and SBQ (p<0.001, kappa: 0.609, McNemar Test), a moderate agreement was present between BQ and ST (p=0.05, kappa: 0.607), and the weak correlation was found between BQ and SBQ questionnaires (p<0.001, kappa: 0.472, McNemar). Conclusion: It will be possible to eliminate a preventable cause of traffic accidents by evaluating OSAS risks in vehicle drivers with valid and easily-applicable tests such as the SBQ and SQ, and to direct drivers to appropriate units for polysomnography.