Correlations between the pediatric sleep questionnaire and the pediatric overnight pulse oximetry

Since access to polysomnography is often limited, overnight pulse oximetry (OPO) is often used as an alternative despite its lower sensitivity. OPO can be an effective screening tool for sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), potentially indicating the presence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). OPO is also required for organizing postoperative monitoring following adenotonsillectomy. The Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire (PSQ) is a validated 22-item questionnaire that assesses OSA symptoms, of which the first six items report obstructive symptoms (obstructive subscale). Our study aims to determine the correlation between OPO and PSQ results and to evaluate if this questionnaire can be used to prioritize OPO for children suspected of OSA.

We conducted a retrospective, single-center study in a pediatric tertiary hospital involving 100 consecutive children. Participants were included if they were 2 years and older, had clinical suspicion of OSA, a completed PSQ, and a recent OPO result.

The total PSQ score and the obstructive PSQ subscale have respective sensitivities of 80.4 % and 83.8 % for predicting SDB suggested by OPO. The sensitivity of the obstructive subscale increases to 90.9 % in children with adenotonsillar hypertrophy. However, the PSQ score isn't a reliable predictor of the severity of OSA as determined by OPO. The presence of comorbidities in children does not influence the correlation between the PSQ and OPO results.

The obstructive PSQ subscale is a quick, easy, and sensitive tool for predicting OSA diagnosed by OPO, particularly when there is adenotonsillar hypertrophy. The PSQ can prioritize children with high scores for OPO.