Objective: To review the available bibliographic data to identify the best screening methods to detect potential obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) patients during dental clinical practice.
Methods: Relevant studies published up to April 2020 were sourced from PubMed, Embase, MEDLINE, Cochrane, and LILACS databases.
Results: Thirty studies were selected. For adults, the screening methods available to the dentist included questionnaires, scales, indexes, pulse oximetry, and anatomical factors. A combination of questionnaires is potentially the most reliable method to detect OSA risk. For children, only information on questionnaires and anatomical factors was found; two questionnaires accurately identified potential OSA risk cases. Anatomical factors also displayed a significant relation with OSA for both populations.
Conclusion: Dentists have a fundamental role in early detection of potential OSA cases since they can use the methods identified in this review to perform an initial screening of the population.
Abbreviations: OSA: Obstructive sleep apnea; PSG: Polysomnography; HST: Home sleep study; BMI: Body mass index; PPV: Positive predictive value; NPV: Negative predictive value; AHI: Apnea hypopnea index; RDI: Respiratory disturbance index; ODI: Oxygen desaturation index; PSQ: Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire; SRBD: Sleep-related breathing disorder; CSHQ: Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire; ESS: Epworth Sleepiness Scale; PSQI: Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index.
Keywords: Screening; apnea; dentist.