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Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome as an accident risk factor in professional drivers in Yekaterinburg. Dangerous Sleep (DS-1) study

https://doi.org/10.14412/2074-2711-2015-1-49-54

Abstract

About 20% of all road traffic accidents may be associated with falling asleep while driving. This may be caused by sleep disorders leading to daytime sleepiness, the most common of which is obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS).
Objective: to study somatic and mental health, sleep disorders, OSAS in particular, in the population of Russian drivers (Sverdlovsk Region).
Patients and methods. The descriptive cohort «Dangerous Sleep» (DS-1) study of 20 professional drivers having more than 5-year driving experience was conducted at the Clinical Institute of the Brain. The mean age of the drivers was 45.8 years. They underwent somatic evaluation for cardiovascular risk factors and a psychological examination involving a risk readiness diagnostic procedure, the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale, the Beck Depression Inventory, and an electroencephalographic examination. A somnological examination assumed testing using the Epworth sleepiness scale, polysomnography, or overnight pulse metry. 
Results and discussion. 30% of the drivers were found to have marked attention disorders and an inability to adapt to extreme conditions, which create a risk for professional duties. The predisposing factors were noted to be alcohol addiction, overweight, and OSAS, the rate of the latter proved to be higher than that in the general population of able-bodied men. It was shown that a somnological examination should be obligatorily performed while hiring professional drivers, particularly to long hauliers. The drivers having a long length of experience, in whom a periodic examination detects sleep disorders, should be treated for somatic diseases and should also have individual working schedules to rule out their long night-time driving. 

About the Authors

A. A. Belkin
Clinical Institute of the Brain, Berezovskiy, Russia; 28, Shilovskaya St., Build 6, Berezovsky, Sverdlovsk Region 623702; Ural State Medical University, Ministry of Health of Russia, Yekaterinburg, Russia; 3, Repin St., Yekaterinburg 620028
Russian Federation


E. V. Alekseeva
Clinical Institute of the Brain, Berezovskiy, Russia; 28, Shilovskaya St., Build 6, Berezovsky, Sverdlovsk Region 623702;
Russian Federation


O. V. Zhigulskaya
Clinical Institute of the Brain, Berezovskiy, Russia; 28, Shilovskaya St., Build 6, Berezovsky, Sverdlovsk Region 623702;
Russian Federation


E. K. Romanova
Clinical Institute of the Brain, Berezovskiy, Russia; 28, Shilovskaya St., Build 6, Berezovsky, Sverdlovsk Region 623702;
Russian Federation


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ISSN 2074-2711 (Print)
ISSN 2310-1342 (Online)