Obstructive sleep apnea: choosing wisely, doing the right thing

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) can lead to a significant reduction in quality of life, and untreated moderate to severe OSA (apnea–hypopnea index ≥ 15/h) significantly increases the risk of many—predominantly cardiovascular—diseases. Considering the high prevalence of the disease and the associated impairments, effective diagnosis and treatment of OSA is of particular importance. The German Sleep Society (DGSM) has therefore compiled five practical positive and negative recommendations each, which are intended to facilitate the diagnostic and therapeutic process in OSA. They refer in particular to the indications for sleep medical diagnostics and specific treatment options, taking into account the clinical presentation of the disease, individual risk factors and comorbidities. The selection of recommendations is based on clinical relevance, existing deficits in terms of over- or undertreatment, and the strength of recommendations in the current S3 guideline of the DGSM on sleep-related breathing disorders.