Facilitators and barriers to referral compliance among dental patients with increased risk of obstructive sleep apnea

AbstractObjective: Our aims were to determine the adherence rate to dentist referrals for sleep apnea evaluation and the barriers and facilitators to referral compliance.Material and methods: A sample of 1099 patients was screened with the STOP-Bang questionnaire. Those with elevated risk were referred for a sleep evaluation. An interview was conducted over the phone to determine compliance to referral and the barriers and facilitators to compliance.Results: Of the 1099 patients (mean age: 45.1 ± 10 years) screened, 224 (20.4%) patients were determined to be at-risk for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Only 41 (18.3%) patients with increased risk adhered to referral recommendation. Demographic and health characteristics did not show significant differences between the compliant and non-compliant patients. The most common facilitators to compliance were increased awareness about OSA (N = 25, 65%) and dentist recommendation (N = 14, 34.1%), whereas the most common barriers to referral compliance were misconce...