Correlations between objective and subjective outcomes after adenotonsillar surgery in children with OSA

Objectives To investigate whether the OSA-18 questionnaire and a postoperative patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) question correlated with polysomnography (PSG) data. Methods A prospective study of otherwise healthy young children with moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) to investigate if the obstructive apnea-hypopnea index (OAHI) before and 6-12 months after adenotonsil surgery correlated with the OSA-18 total symptom score (TSS) and the sleep disturbance subscale (SDS), as well as a PROM question on symptom improvement with responses on a 4-grade Likert scale. Results Of 201 children, 173 (86%) had complete data of OAHI and OSA-18 pre- and postoperatively. The mean age was 3.2 years (SD 1.0) and the mean OAHI was 15.9 (11.3). Significant correlations between changes in the OAHI and OSA-18 were found, both TSS (r = 0.29, p < .001) and SDS (r = 0.53, p < .001). A total of 136 (68%) patients responded to the PROM question, the majority of whose symptoms had disappeared (n = 102) or almost disappeared (n = 30). Four patients had unchanged symptoms, and none had worsening symptoms. A correlation was found between the PROM question and a change in the OAHI (r = 0.36, p < .001), as well as a change in the OSA-18 TSS (r = 0.24, p = .006) and the SDS (r = 0.34, p < .001). The specificity of the PROM question for prediction of a postoperative OAHI < 2 was 82%, and the sensitivity was 38%. Conclusion Changes in the OAHI significantly correlated with changes in the OSA-18, especially with the sleep disturbance scale, which could be an alternative for evaluation at follow-ups. Level of Evidence 3