Patients presenting for colonoscopy: A great opportunity to screen for sleep apnea

• Published in: World journal of gastrointestinal endoscopy 2016-11, Vol.8 (19), p.697-700
• Main Authors: Harvin, Glenn, Ali, Eslam, Raina, Amit, Leland, William, Abid, Sabeen, Vahora, Zahid, Movahed, Hossein, Kachru, Sumyra, Tee, Rick
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Observational Study
• ISSN: 1948-5190; 1948-5190
• DOI: 10.4253/wjge.v8.i19.697

AIM To discover the prevalence and the feasibility of screening for obstructive sleep apnea(OSA) in patients presenting for routine colonoscopy.METHODS Adult patients having a colonoscopy for routine indications at our outpatient endoscopy center were eligible if they did not carry a diagnosis of OSA or had not had a prior sleep study.All patients were administered the Berlin questionnaire prior to the procedure.Mallampati,neck circumference,height,weight,and BMI were obtained for each patient.Patients were observed for any drops in oxygen saturation < 92% or the presence of snoring for > 10 s.Patients were determined to be high-risk if they met at least 2 of the 3 symptom categories for the Berlin questionnaire.RESULTS A total of 60 patients were enrolled and completed the study; mean age was 56 years(range 23-72 year).Twenty-six patients had a positive Berlin questionnaire(43.3%),31 patients had a negative Berlin questionnaire(51.6%) and 3 patients had an equivocal result(5.0%).Patients with a positive Berlin questionnaire were more likely to be of increased weight(mean 210.5 lbs vs mean 169.8 lbs,P = 0.003),increased BMI(33.0 kg/m2 vs 26.8 kg/m2,P = 0.0016),and have an increased neck circumference(38.4 cm vs 35.5 cm,P = 0.012).Patients with a positive Berlin questionnaire were more likely to have a drop in oxygen saturation < 92%(76.9% vs 36.4%,P = 0.01).Patients with snoring were more likely to have a positive Berlin questionnaire(8/9 patients vs 1/31 patients with negative Berlin questionnaire; P = 0.0045).CONCLUSION Risk for OSA is extremely common in a population presenting for a routine colonoscopy,and screening at the time of a colonoscopy offers an excellent opportunity to identify these patients.