Home video sleep recording as a predictor of polysomnography-diagnosed obstructive sleep apnoea in a developmentally normal paediatric population
4 affiliations
- 1Department of Respiratory and Sleep Medicine, Queensland Children’s Hospital, South Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- 2Faculty of Medicine, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- 3Griffith Biostatistics Unit, Griffith University, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- 4Wesley Research Institute, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Abstract
Background: Polysomnography (PSG) is the gold standard investigation for paediatric obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) but has limitations. Sleep videos are a promising screening alternative.
Objectives: This study explores the use of a short, home-based video sleep recording captured shortly after sleep onset as a simple and readily available screening modality for OSA.
Methods: Children (aged 1–18 years) undergoing PSG at a tertiary hospital to investigate OSA symptoms were consecutively recruited. OSA was defined as an obstructive apnoea hypopnoea index >1 episode/h on PSG. Videos (≥5 min) of the head and exposed torso were captured at home. Snore, type of inspiratory noise, respiratory events, respiratory effort, mouth breathing and neck extension were scored using a modified scoring system. The Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children (SDSC) was completed. Sleep video scores were then combined with brief demographic and anthropometric data and SDSC results using logistic regression to develop an OSA screening model.
Results: 194 children were recruited, and 91 technically satisfactory videos were returned (29F; mean (SD) age 8.9 (3.0) years; median (IQR) body mass index (BMI) z-score 1.1 (0.3–2.1)). 26 (28.6%) children had OSA on PSG. Total video score ≥1 predicted OSA with sensitivity 80.8%, specificity 67.2% and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) 0.74. A multivariate logistic regression model incorporating total video score, BMI z-score and SDSC subscale score predicted OSA with sensitivity 94.4%, negative predictive value 96.9% and AUC 0.89.
Conclusions: We have found a single, short sleep video captured at a time convenient for the parent/caregiver to be a promising, simple and inexpensive screening modality for paediatric OSA. The addition of easily obtained demographic, anthropometric and questionnaire-based items resulted in a high sensitivity, supporting ongoing investigation of this modality and its utility in streamlining PSG access for those at highest risk of OSA while allowing lower-risk children to follow a watch-and-wait approach.
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BibTeX
@article{daniels2026home,
title = {{Home video sleep recording as a predictor of polysomnography-diagnosed obstructive sleep apnoea in a developmentally normal paediatric population}},
author = {Celeste Daniels and Nitin Kapur and Robert S Ware and Leanne Gauld},
journal = {BMJ Open Respiratory Research},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1136/bmjresp-2026-004187},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjresp-2026-004187},
note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Home video sleep recording as a predictor of polysomnography-diagnosed obstructive sleep apnoea in a developmentally normal paediatric population
AU - Celeste Daniels
AU - Nitin Kapur
AU - Robert S Ware
AU - Leanne Gauld
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/26
JO - BMJ Open Respiratory Research
DO - 10.1136/bmjresp-2026-004187
UR - https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjresp-2026-004187
AB - Background: Polysomnography (PSG) is the gold standard investigation for paediatric obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) but has limitations. Sleep videos are a promising screening alternative. Objectives: This study explores the use of a short, home-based video sleep recording captured shortly after sleep onset as a simple and readily available screening modality for OSA. Methods: Children (aged 1–18 years) undergoing PSG at a tertiary hospital to investigate OSA symptoms were consecutively recruited. OSA was defined as an obstructive apnoea hypopnoea index >1 episode/h on PSG. Videos (≥5 min) of the head and exposed torso were captured at home. Snore, type of inspiratory noise, respiratory events, respiratory effort, mouth breathing and neck extension were scored using a modified scoring system. The Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children (SDSC) was completed. Sleep video scores were then combined with brief demographic and anthropometric data and SDSC results using logistic regression to develop an OSA screening model. Results: 194 children were recruited, and 91 technically satisfactory videos were returned (29F; mean (SD) age 8.9 (3.0) years; median (IQR) body mass index (BMI) z-score 1.1 (0.3–2.1)). 26 (28.6%) children had OSA on PSG. Total video score ≥1 predicted OSA with sensitivity 80.8%, specificity 67.2% and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) 0.74. A multivariate logistic regression model incorporating total video score, BMI z-score and SDSC subscale score predicted OSA with sensitivity 94.4%, negative predictive value 96.9% and AUC 0.89. Conclusions: We have found a single, short sleep video captured at a time convenient for the parent/caregiver to be a promising, simple and inexpensive screening modality for paediatric OSA. The addition of easily obtained demographic, anthropometric and questionnaire-based items resulted in a high sensitivity, supporting ongoing investigation of this modality and its utility in streamlining PSG access for those at highest risk of OSA while allowing lower-risk children to follow a watch-and-wait approach.
SN - 2052-4439
ER -