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Illness perceptions in obstructive sleep apnoea populations: patients do not believe that their symptoms are due to their sleep problems
Abstract   Peer reviewed

Illness perceptions in obstructive sleep apnoea populations: patients do not believe that their symptoms are due to their sleep problems

L McNeil, T Skinner, Tamara De Regt, J Phang, A Mellor, M O'Laithe, P Eastwood, S Whitworth, A Holt, A Neinaber, …
Sleep and Biological Rhythms, Vol.8, p.A31
Annual Scientific Meeting of the Australian Sleep Association and Australian Sleep Technologists Association: Sleep Down Under 2010 - Biodiversity of Sleep, 22nd (Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-Oct-2010–23-Oct-2010)
2010
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1479-8425.2010.00457_4.x
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https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1479-8425.2010.00457_4.xView
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Abstract

Medical Biochemistry and Metabolomics Neurosciences Psychology
Introduction: Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) has been identifi ed as one of the most common sleep disorders in Western society. Continu-ous positive airways pressure (CPAP) has been shown to reduce OSA symptoms and associated health risks, however research has revealed surprisingly low rates of treatment use, as well as treatment uptake. One reason may be that patients do not believe that their symptoms are due to their sleep problems. This preliminary study assessed the relationships between illness representations, based on the Common Sense Model of Illness Behaviour, to sleep diffi culties and disease sever-ity in sample of patients attending a sleep clinic for a diagnostic sleep study.Methods: A prospective, longitudinal cohort study. Participants were recruited from a local sleep clinic, where they completed questionnaires at their diagnostic overnight sleep study. Questionnaires assessed Symptom complaints (e.g. sore throat, sore eyes, headache, fatigue, irritability) and whether patients attributed these to their sleep diffi cul-ties (Illness Identity) from the Illness Perceptions Questionnaire - Revised.Results: To date, the questionnaire has been completed by 517 partici-pants. At their overnight PSG, patients complained of an average of 6 symptoms (SD 3.5, 0-14), but over 1/5th (22%) reported that these were not due to their sleep diffi culties (M 3.5, SD 3.0, 0-15). Neither the number of symptoms reported (r = .02) nor the number of symp-toms patients attributed to their sleep diffi culties (r = .09) were related to the severity of their OSA (indicted by AHI).Discussion: These data suggest that there is a mismatch between patients' perceptions about their illness and the diagnosis they are being given. Moreover, their experience of symptoms is not related to the objective severity of their condition.

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