Obstructive sleep apnea risk for driving license applicants in India - A community based study

• Published in: International journal of occupational medicine and environmental health Vol. 31; no. 1; pp. 25 - 36
• Main Authors: Dubey, Abhishek, Bajaj, Darshan K, Mishra, Apurva, Singh, Balendra Pratap, Gupta, Vinay, Kant, Surya, Dixit, Swati
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Poland Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine 01.01.2018
• Subjects: Age; Alcohol; Alcoholic beverages; Anthropometry; Apnea; Blood pressure; Body mass index; Body size; Communities; Driver fatigue; drivers; Drivers' licenses; Driving ability; Drowsiness; Fatigue; high blood pressure; Hip; Hypertension; Integrated works software; Males; Neck; Obesity; obstructive sleep apnea; Population; Population (statistical); Questionnaires; Risk assessment; Risk factors; road traffic accidents; Roads & highways; Sleep; Sleep apnea; Sleep deprivation; Sleep disorders; Sleepiness; Smoking; STOP-Bang; Tobacco; Tobacco chewing; Traffic; Traffic accidents; Traffic accidents & safety; India; obstructive sleep apnea; sleepiness; road traffic accidents; drivers; high blood pressure; STOP-Bang
• ISSN: 1232-1087; 1896-494X
• DOI: 10.13075/ijomeh.1896.01021

To determine the risk of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) for male permanent driving license (DL) applicants of Lucknow, India. In this cross-sectional community based, study body mass index, waist-hip ratio, blood pressure of each subject were determined as an anthropometric parameter along with the history of habit of smoking, tobacco chewing, alcohol consumption. STOP-Bang (Snoring, Tired or sleepy, Observed apnea, high blood Pressure, Body mass index, Age, Neck, Gender) Questionnaire - a scoring risk assessment tool - was applied for assessment of OSA risk (high OSA risk defined by score ≥ 3) for 542 male DL recipients at 2 Regional Transport Office (RTO) centers in Lucknow, India. The statistical software SPSS 17.0 was applied to the testing. In total 23% (N = 125) of participants were found with the risk of OSA. High blood pressure (≥ 140/90 mm Hg) was found for the maximum number of participants (40.5%) followed by neck circumference > 40 cm (17.1%), age (> 50 years old) (15.3%), snoring (12.3%) and tired/sleepy (10.5%). Mean values of age, anthropometric measurements and blood pressure were observed significantly higher (p < 0.001) for participants with the OSA risk. In this population the risk of OSA risk (STOP-Bang score ≥ 3) was observed for 6.7% of young (< 35 years old), 34% of middle (35-45 years old) and 73% of elder age adults (> 45 years old). In view of findings of this study a high number of male driving license applicants were observed with the risk of OSA. Therefore efforts should be made to develop a national screening guideline/protocol for the OSA risk assessment for driving license applicants in India. This may reduce the possibility of road traffic accidents due to the OSA-associated fatigue and drowsiness behind the wheels. Int J Occup Med Environ Health 2018;31(1):25-36.