Differences in patients derived from otolaryngology and other specialties with sleep apnea.

A total of 481 patients were included. OSA was occurred in 82.4% of the subjects (90 in ENT and 306 in other specialties). Patients with OSA referred from other specialists were older than ENT patients (55 ± 13 vs 44 ± 12; p < 0.001), there was more obesity (IMC 31 ± 5.0 vs 28.7 ± 3.8; p < 0,001), a larger neck circumference (42.2 cm ± 3.7 vs 40.6 cm ± 3.0; p < 0.001) and more reported comorbidities (p < 0.001). ENT patients reported mild OSA (46% vs 31%, p = 0.015) and more positional apnea (62% vs 39%, p = 0.002). In this group, the STOP-BANG questionnaire showed an AUC 0.695 vs AUC 0.804, and for sensitivity, the best cutoff was 4 points. Patients referred from otorhinolaryngology are different from those referred from other specialties. Clinical evaluation and screening of OSA should be patient-centered according to these clinical findings.