Undetected Sleep Apnea in the Postanesthesia Acute Care Unit

The primary aim is to determine whether patients with suspected OSAHS as predicted by the STOP-BANG questionnaire will have an increased length of stay (LOS) in the postanesthesia acute care unit (PACU) compared with those without suspected OSAHS. The second aim will be to determine the LOS in patients with known sleep apnea by history. This length of stay will be compared with LOS in patient with an affirmative response to the STOP-BANG questionnaire to determine if prior knowledge of diagnosed sleep apnea will be associated with a lower LOS than in patients with suspected OSA. The third aim will be to characterize the adverse clinical outcomes (respiratory, cardiovascular, and neurological) associated with suspected OSAHS in patients who respond affirmatively to the STOP-BANG questionnaire and in those patients with known OSA. These data (including number of desaturations, bradypnea, brady- or tachycardia, and use of reversal agents) will be recorded by the PACU nursing staff. Unexpected admissions to the hospital and transfers to the intensive care units will also be measured. These data will help identify the most critical determinants of length of stay.