[Risk of accidents in patients with nocturnal respiration disorders]

Excessive daytime sleepiness is one of the main symptoms of sleep apnoea, which can, especially in monotonous situations, lead to real nodding off. Since driving a motor vehicle can also be monotonous, patients suffering from untreated sleep apnoea may be a possible traffic risk. Before undergoing a polysomnographic examination, 123 patients filled in a questionnaire inquiring about fatigue and sleepiness while driving a vehicle as well as accidents during the past three years. Five groups were formed according to severity of sleep apnoea. Right through these groups, the increase in heavy fatigue during driving (median) was significant: from "seldom" (AI less than 5) via "sometimes" to "often" (AI greater than or equal to 35). Occurrences of short periods of falling asleep (means) were practically not reported (0.02) by the group without sleep apnoea but increased considerably to 3.37 times per 1000 km for the group with an AI greater than or equal to 35. The frequency of accidents due to sleepiness rises significantly in concurrence with the seriousness of sleep apnoea. Besides, patients with an AI greater than or equal to 5 attribute 23 out of 28 accidents to sleepiness, whereas patients without sleep apnoea attribute all four accidents to other reasons (p = .0035). These findings emphasise the importance of an early diagnosis and effective therapy of sleep apnoea - which is available as nasal continuous positive airway pressure ventilation (nCPAP). Sleep medicine can thus not only help patients suffering from sleep apnoea but may also reduce the health risk of other traffic participants and be cost-saving.