Knowledge and Attitudes of Obstructive Sleep Apnea among Jordanian Otolaryngologists: A Cross-Sectional Study

Ebraheem Albazee; Lina Almahmoud; Dua'a Shaout; Sara Abu-Ghazal; Mohammad Alnifise; Sarya Swed; Ahmed Aljabali; Mohammed Amir Rais; Amro A El-Sakka; Amjed Adnan Tarifi

doi:10.1007/s12070-023-04180-8

Knowledge and Attitudes of Obstructive Sleep Apnea among Jordanian Otolaryngologists: A Cross-Sectional Study

Indian J Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2024 Feb;76(1):443-452. doi: 10.1007/s12070-023-04180-8. Epub 2023 Sep 13.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Kuwait Institute for Medical Specializations (KIMS), Kuwait City, Kuwait.
² Faculty of Medicine, The Hashemite University, Zarqa, Jordan.
³ Faculty of Medicine, Aleppo University, Aleppo, Syria.
⁴ Faculty of Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, Jordan.
⁵ Faculty of Medicine of Algiers, University of Algiers, Algiers, Algeria.
⁶ Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt.
⁷ Department of Special Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, The Hashemite University, Zarqa, Jordan.

PMID: 38440506
PMCID: PMC10909026 (available on 2025-02-01)
DOI: 10.1007/s12070-023-04180-8

Abstract

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common sleep-related breathing disorder that affects almost one billion individuals worldwide. An estimated 16.8% of adults in Jordan have been diagnosed with OSA. Given the importance of management of OSA by otolaryngologists, we assessed the knowledge and attitudes of Jordanian otolaryngologists in managing OSA in adult and pediatric patients. A survey, conducted anonymously online, was sent present otolaryngology residents and specialist in Jordan, in the English language. The participants were given the OSA Knowledge and Attitude questionnaire (OSAKA, OSAKA-KIDS), which have been previously validated. Data were obtained and then analyzed via SPSS software. A total of 140 residents and specialist of otolaryngology were selected. A significant difference in OSAKA scores were found between otolaryngologists under 30 years of age and those above, with higher scores for the older age group. The proportion of specialists who 'agreed' or 'strongly agreed' they are confident in their ability to manage patients with OSA was significantly higher that junior residents (73.8% vs 33.3%; p = 0.008). More than 10 years at practice was associated with statistically significant higher levels of knowledge towards OSAKA scale (AOR = 0.09; p = 0.044). Additionally, being a senior resident was significantly associated with more knowledge towards OSAKA-KIDS scale (AOR = 0.19; p = 0.03). Otolaryngology residents and specialists' knowledge of OSA was very good. Further improving in the level of the knowledge toward OSA among the otolaryngology resident doctors should be implemented as possible by following the updated guidelines for the diagnosis and management OSA.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12070-023-04180-8.

Keywords: Jordan; Knowledge; OSA; Obstructive sleep apnea; Otolaryngology.

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