ABSTRACT
Classic medical diagnosis is based on symptoms and physical findings, which are then confirmed by laboratory tests. SDB is easily diagnosed when symptoms are presented. Many patients, however, do not provide accurate snoring or sleep histories for a variety of reasons. Patients who sleep alone are not aware or snoring or apneic events and are often unaware or in denial about daytime fatigue, somnolence, and many other SDB-related symptoms. Even patients who are aware of snoring and apnea will usually not volunteer this information on routine physical examination. When patients present with a classical history, the diagnosis of SDB is relatively routine, but physicians have no clear criteria to identify SDB based on physical examination alone. Use of the clinical staging system based on palate position, tonsil size, and BMI will provide a simple, reliable, reproducible screening assessment tool to identify those patients likely to have SDB.
