Sleep Apnea In Singers - article about Sleep Apnea In Singers

Studying Sleep Apnea In Singers

The Study

Drs. Irumee Pai, Stephen Lo, Dennis Wolf, and Azgher Kajieker, of the Department of Otorhinolaryngology — Head and Neck Surgery, St. George's Hospital in London, conducted the study on sleep apnea in singers among semi-professionals who sang in choirs and subjects who did not sing at all.

An investigator hired by the sleep apnea in singers study recorded the subjects' height and weight, and each test subject's spouse or partner rated the sleep apnea patient's snoring on a severity scale known as the Snoring Scale Score.

The Snoring Scale Score

Partners gave the patients a score of 0 for never, 1 for one night per week, 2 for two to three nights per week, and 3 for four or more nights per week, based on whether snoring affects the partners' relationship; whether snoring causes the non-snoring partner to be tired or irritable; whether the partners have to sleep in separate rooms because the snoring is so disruptive; whether the snoring is loud; and whether, when the partners sleep away from home, the snoring affects people nearby, in hotels, campgrounds, and the like.

A Snoring Scale Score of 5 or more in the study on sleep apnea in singers was considered severe.

The Epworth Sleepiness Scale

The London study on sleep apnea in singers also measured whether the singers dozed off or fell asleep during the day. Participants were asked to measure whether they had no chance of dozing, a slight chance of dozing, a moderate chance of dozing, or a high chance of dozing under various situations. Subjects were asked about situations like sitting and reading; watching TV; sitting in a public place like a theater or meeting; sitting as a passenger in a car for an hour without a break; lying down to rest in the afternoon; sitting and talking to someone; sitting quietly after a lunch without alcohol; and stopping for traffic for a few minutes in the car.

A score of 7 to 8 is average; subjects who score 9 or higher are advised to see a sleep specialist as soon as possible.

The study of sleep apnea in singers concluded that singing may be useful in treating sleep apnea subjects who snore.

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