Presented at The British Association of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, May 2002 and at the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, Orlando, FL, September 21-24, 2003.
Refers to erratum:
Erratum
Susan Aletha Douglas
Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery
May 2006 (Vol. 134, Issue 5, Page 891) Full Text |
Full-Text PDF (104 KB)
Objective
To develop a patient-derived snoring questionnaire, the Snoring Symptoms Inventory (SSI), and explore its structure and relationship to the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS); and to assess the sensitivity of the SSI to change.
Study design and setting
The SSI was developed from an open-ended questionnaire given to 120 habitual snorers. The 25 symptoms reported compose the SSI. This study examines 261 subsequent snorers assessed between April 1998 and August 2002, who completed both the SSI and the ESS. Fifty-five of them underwent laser uvulopalatoplasty and their preoperative and postoperative SSI results were compared.
Results
The total SSI score is the key outcome derived. Principal component analysis identified two further dimensions, one contrasting family/social with work-related problems and another comparing physical problems with embarrassment. The total score correlated weakly with the ESS. Laser uvulopalatoplasty significantly reduced patients’ overall symptom severity and family and socially related problems.
Conclusion
The SSI is a comprehensive and sensitive measure for assessing snoring, making it a useful clinical outcome tool for snoring treatment.
Significance
The SSI is a new, useful snoring questionnaire.
EBM rating: B-2b
aThe Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham, United Kingdom
bThe University of Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
c+The Freeman Hospital, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
Reprint requests: Susan Douglas, The Queens Medical Centre, Derby Road, Nottingham NG7 2UH, UK.
ABSTRACT