Airway evaluation in obstructive sleep apnea

The prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in the general adult population is approximately 3%-7% for men and 2%-5% for women; however, variability in definitions may lead to underestimation of the true burden of the disease and postponing of the treatment. Thus, the first step in the management of OSA is the accurate evaluation of the severity of the problem and also the level of obstruction. Different modalities such as clinical examination and videoendoscopy have been used to detect OSA and its severity. However, the importance of these diagnostic tests is based on the specificity and the sensitivity of tests and their positive and negative predictive values. These tests are discussed in detail in this article.