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STOP BANG

STOP BANG Score for Obstructive Sleep Apnoea

Purpose : A Screening Instrument for Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA)

 

Admin time :  5 min.


User Friendly :  High


Administered by : GP 

 

Content : The questionnaire consists of eight yes-or-no questions based on the major risk factors for OSA.

The name STOP-Bang is an acronym for the first letter of each symptom or physical attribute often associated with OSA:

  • Snoring: This question assesses whether or not you snore loudly enough to bother a bed partner.

  • Tiredness: This symptom involves feeling daytime tiredness, which may include falling asleep during daily tasks.

  • Observed Apnea: If a sleep partner has noticed that you stop breathing or gasp for air as you sleep, this can be a sign of OSA.

  • Pressure: High blood pressure is also a symptom.

  • BMI: Physicians look for a body mass index that is higher than 35.

  • Age: Those who are older than 50 are at higher risk for OSA.

  • Neck Circumference: Physicians measure your neck circumference. A measurement greater than 16 inches is considered a risk factor.

  • Gender: Males are considered to be more likely to have OSA.

 

Author :  Chung F, 2008  access

Copyright : Chung F, 2008

Published by Anesthesiology journal. Free to use under Open Access and  Creative Commons License Attribution‐Noncommercial No Derivative 3.0 (CCBY NCND) which allows readers to disseminate and reuse the article, as well as share and reuse of the scientific material. It does not permit commercial exploitation or the creation of derivative works without specific permission.

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STOP BANG

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STOP BANG - online

BMI calculator

STOP BANG

 

Advantages:

  • free to use

  • Independent researchers have found the STOP-Bang Questionnaire useful as a screen for OSA in (Singh A, updated 2021)
    • adults with Down syndrome
    • people with type 2 diabetes
    • pregnant people with obesity
    • adults over 40

Disadvantages: 

  • ​STOP-Bang is an effective tool for assessing specific risk factors and ruling out OSA. Those who have more risk factors should be further evaluated

  • The test may have a high rate for false positives, leading to unnecessary healthcare costs if doctors send too many patients for sleep tests based on the STOP-Bang results.

  • Performs less well for certain groups of people, such as veterans and those with kidney failure

 

Accuracy : (Chung F, 2008)

AHI>5 : sensitivity 83,6% and specificity 56,4%

AHI>15 : sensitivity 92,9% and specificity 43,0%

AHI>30 : sensitivity 100% and specificity 37,0%

Can the STOP-Bang Questionnaire Diagnose Other Types of Sleep Apnea?

The STOP-Bang Questionnaire was developed for detection of OSA, and the overwhelming majority of studies have focused on its use for OSA.

As opposed to OSA, lapses in breathing during central sleep apnea are due to problems in brain signaling instead of physical obstruction of the airway.

Generally, STOP-Bang studies exclude central apneas, or cessations in breathing due to causes other than an obstructed airway, in their analyses. As a result, we do not know how well or if the STOP-Bang Questionnaire is a useful screening for central sleep apnea.

People with mixed sleep apnea have a combination of obstructive and central apneas. Mixed sleep apnea usually originates due to obstruction of the airway, so the STOP-Bang Questionnaire may be useful in identifying some cases of mixed sleep apnea. However, relying on the STOP-Bang may cause doctors to miss the sleep apnea cases that begin with central apneas.

Until researchers formally study the STOP-Bang Questionnaire in people with mixed sleep apnea, we will not know if the test can reliably predict the presence of mixed sleep apnea.

This Tool is used in Sleep Disorders

Back To : Sleep Disorders

Sleep Disorders
Geriatric Syndromes

Sleep Disorders is one of 4 Geriatric Syndromes

 

Back To : Geriatric Syndromes

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