Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Excessive Daytime Sleepiness, and Road Traffic Accidents among Interstate Commercial Vehicle Drivers in Nigeria

Abstract

Introduction. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a growing public health problem in developing countries. However the burden among commercial drivers is not well described. Methods. The Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) and Berlin questionnaire were administered to interstate commercial road transport drivers to assess the tendency to sleep in daytime and the risk of OSA, respectively. Body mass index (BMI), neck, and waist-hip circumferences were measured. Results. Out of 138 commercial drivers, 124 (90%) responded and provided complete data. The mean (SD) age, BMI, neck, and waist circumferences were 40.4 (9.3) years, 28.0 (4.6) kg/m 2 , 40.0 (3.0) cm, and 92.8 (11.1) cm, respectively. Twenty-two percent had ESS score above 11 and 36% of the respondents had a high risk for obstructive sleep apnea. Adjusting for age, BMI, and waist and neck circumferences, the key predictors of road accidents were ESS score above 11 (OR 3.77,), self-reported diagnosis of hypertension (OR 4.63,, and increasing hip circumference (OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.01-1.23). Conclusion. Obstructive sleep apnea is common among commercial interstate road drivers in Nigeria and ESS may be a simple tool for assessing accident risk.

Correlation Between Predictors of Obstructive Sleep Apnoea

“…Neck circumference has a positive correlation with Mallampati scores as found in this study. [8,9]. However, the correlation between other possible predictors of obstructive sleep apnoea such as age, sex, blood glucose, blood pressure were not considered in this study.…”

“…Screening for Obstructive sleep apnoea in drivers is very important as undiagnosed cases among them poses risk for the society due to their job. Several studies in Nigeria have shown that commercial car drivers are particularly at risk of Obstructive sleep apnoea [8][9][10]. However, these studies did not consider the relationship between these obesity indices.…”