Correlates of the "don't know" response to questions about snoring

Many persons say that they "don't know" whether they snore. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence and correlates of such responses in an elderly population. Subjects were 1715 members (1,155 men, 560 women) of a previously defined cohort (Western Group Collaborative Study) followed prospectively since 1960-1961 with a current mean age of 75.9 (SD = 4.3) for the men and 71.4 (SD = 5.3) for the women. We collected survey questionnaires and reviewed medical records. Results indicated that risk factors for the "don't know" response in this population were similar to those for frequent snoring and included: male sex, higher Body Mass Index, smoking, and use of sinus medication. Between 28 and 44% of the cohort answered questions about snoring with a "don't know" response. These data are compatible with the interpretation that subjects may disavow knowledge of their own snoring and suggest that future studies consider the "don't know" response to questions about snoring as a response of potential interest.