%0 Journal Article
%T Translation and validation of Berlin questionnaire in primary health care in Greece
%A Izolde Bouloukaki
%A Ioannis D Komninos
%A Charalampos Mermigkis
%A Katerina Micheli
%A Maria Komninou
%A Violeta Moniaki
%A Eleni Mauroudi
%A Nikolaos M Siafakas
%A Sophia E Schiza
%J BMC Pulmonary Medicine
%D 2013
%I BioMed Central
%R 10.1186/1471-2466-13-6
%X We recruited 189 patients visiting a primary health care setting on the island of Crete, Greece. They all completed the Greek Version of the BQ. Patients were then referred to a Sleep Disorders Unit for evaluation of suspected sleep-disordered breathing.A PSG study was performed in 129 of the 189 subjects (68.3%). BQ identified 74.4% (n£¿=£¿96) of the patients as high-risk for OSAS and the remaining 25.6% (n£¿=£¿33) as low-risk. The sensitivity and specificity of BQ for OSAS diagnosis were 76% and 40%, respectively, for an apnoea¨Chypopnoea index (AHI) ¡Ý5 per hour but <15 per hour, 84% and 61% for an AHI ¡Ý15 per hour but ¡Ü30 per hour, and 79% and 39% for an AHI >30 per hour.In conclusion, the Greek Version of the BQ is a useful instrument for identifying patients at risk for OSAS in primary health care in Greece. The findings of our study confirm that such screening tools should be used by primary care clinicians for OSAS prediction.Obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) is a common disease that is characterised by repetitive episodes of partial or complete upper-airway obstruction during sleep, leading to adverse consequences for both health and quality of life [1-5]. It is currently estimated that at least 1 in 5 American adults has some degree of sleep apnoea, while 1 in 15 has moderate or severe disease [6]. Most epidemiological studies of the prevalence of obstructive sleep apnoea have been performed in North America, Europe, or Australia. However, as the awareness that OSAS can lead to serious medical sequelae is increasing, several studies have been undertaken to estimate the disease burden in other countries, such as China, India, and Korea. Unfortunately, studies investigating the prevalence of OSAS in Greece are lacking. Furthermore, the majority of patients with OSAS remain undiagnosed. In fact, in the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort Study, it was estimated that 93% of women and 82% of men with moderate to severe OSAS are undiagnosed [7]. Therefore, as our understand
%K Berlin questionnaire
%K Obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome
%K Primary care patients
%K Screening tool
%K Greece
%K validation
%U http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2466/13/6