Patient preferences in obstructive sleep apnea-a discrete choice experiment

Area of Science:

• Sleep Medicine
• Health Services Research
• Patient-Centered Outcomes

Background:

• Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a prevalent chronic sleep disorder with various treatment options.
• Patient acceptance and adherence to OSA therapies are influenced by multiple factors.
• Limited understanding exists regarding patient preferences and decision-making in OSA treatment selection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate patient preferences for different obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) treatment attributes.
• To identify key factors influencing patient choices in OSA therapy.
• To understand patient-centered utilities for OSA treatment characteristics.

Main Methods:

• A discrete choice experiment was conducted with 241 OSA patients from a tertiary sleep center.
• Participants evaluated hypothetical treatments based on seven attributes across four choice tasks.
• Random-effects logit and multivariate logistic regression models were used to analyze preferences and interactions with medical variables.

Main Results:

• Patient preferences and derived utilities for OSA treatment attributes differed significantly.
• Key attributes influencing choices included comorbidity risk reduction, daytime sleepiness improvement, surgery requirement, and side effects.
• Demographic and clinical variables (age, gender, AHI) did not impact choices, but OSA history and symptom presence did.

Conclusions:

• This study elucidates patient preferences and utilities for OSA treatment attributes.
• Identified subgroup differences in preferences highlight the need for personalized OSA treatment selection.
• Considering these patient-specific preferences can enhance treatment acceptance and adherence rates.