It takes less than 3 minutes
In a moment you’ll finish a screening for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). You will learn what your risk score is and if it is high, I hope it will motivate you to bring this result to your doctor. This is a valid, medical test called “STOP-Bang” – this is an acronym that stands for eight specific criteria: Snoring, Tiredness, O… and so on. Sounds maybe serious, but this is actually a very simple questionnaire.
Feel free to jump straight to this test, and share it with your partner, if he or she snores for example or meets any of the criteria from the test. Statistically 11% of your friends should take this test right now and go to the doctor asap. Take the test now, I would appreciate however if you come back to read the rest of this article ;p )
796 million people DO NOT know that they have sleep apnea
Not to repeat all the basics about obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), let’s start only from stressing the fact that it is unbelievably under diagnosed sleep disorder. Almost all people who have this disease, they have never taken any kind of sleep apnea test. To give you numbers: it’s estimated that 936 million people have it (see ref. 1: “Estimation of the global prevalence and burden of obstructive sleep apnoea“), but only 15% were diagnosed. Not to mention sleep apnea awareness, it’s literally non-existent.
11% of people you know should take this test right now and go to the doctor asap.
The mission of the RespireLabs project is to significantly influence the above number by:
- educating about sleep apnea
- re-educating about breathing and our daily dysfunctional habits,
- creating a simple tool that will allow sleep apnea testing on the bigger scale then ever before
The very good news is that even as we start from scratch, we still can follow these goals. And this is what happens here. The STOP-Bang test is perfect to reach masses, to inform and motivate people to take action. For scientific evidence, please read the referenced at the end publications (2 & 3).
However…
there are a few things to keep in mind
- this test is not a substitute to a diagnostic test, it informs you that you might be at risk of obstructive sleep apnea, but that’s it.
- this test focuses on obstructive sleep apnea and doesn’t take into account other types of sleep apnea’s (neither central nor mixed)
- the accuracy of this test is different for various populations. For instance it might need some adjustments for Asian population.
References
- Estimation of the global prevalence and burden of obstructive sleep apnoea: a literature-based analysis
- Use and Performance of the STOP-Bang Questionnaire for Obstructive Sleep Apnea Screening Across Geographic Regions
- Validation of the STOP-Bang questionnaire as a screening tool for obstructive sleep apnoea in patients with cardiovascular risk factors: a systematic review and meta-analysis
