Validating the Lithuanian version of the STOP-BANG questionnaire for diagnosing obstructive sleep apnea

Sleep Breath. 2021 Sep;25(3):1503-1509. doi: 10.1007/s11325-020-02256-1. Epub 2021 Jan 6.

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was to prepare and validate the Lithuanian version of the STOP-BANG questionnaire and evaluate its correlation with polysomnography results.

Methods: In this study, we included patients ≥ 18 years of age who underwent overnight polysomnography between January 1 in 2018 and January 1 in 2019. All patients completed the STOP-BANG questionnaire before polysomnography. To assess the adequacy of the questionnaire, we used contingency tables and areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve.

Results: The study included 236 patients. The mean age of the patients was 55.2 ± 11.5 years and 159 (68%) were men. The mean apnea-hypopnea index for the entire study group was 33.8 ± 28.4, and the mean STOP-BANG score was 5.4 ± 1.6 points. Moderate (0.3-0.7, p < 0.05) correlations were found between the STOP-BANG questionnaire scores and all measured objective anthropometric and polysomnography parameters. The questionnaire's Cronbach's alpha score was 0.408. Based on the analysis of the ROC curves, the cut-off STOP-BANG score of 3 points showed a sensitivity of 87% and a specificity of 50% (AUC = 0.717) for the identification of any OSA. The positive predictive value (PPV) for an identification of any OSA at a cut-off point of 3 was 96%, and the negative predictive value (NPV) was 26%.

Conclusions: The linguistic and cultural adaptation of the Lithuanian version of the STOP-BANG questionnaire was carried out in accordance with international recommendations. The Lithuanian version of the STOP-BANG questionnaire is characterized by high sensitivity and average specificity in diagnosing OSA.

Keywords: Obstructive sleep apnea; Polysomnography; STOP-BANG questionnaire; Snoring.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Polysomnography
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Sleep Apnea, Obstructive / diagnosis*
  • Surveys and Questionnaires*
  • Translations
  • Young Adult