Efficacy of Roncolab mobile application for diagnosing the primary sign of sleep-disordered breathing (snoring) in children.

Abstract

Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is a group of disorders associated with breathing anomalies during sleep. Easily detectable by sound, snoring is one of the most common manifestations and the main sign of SDB. Snoring is characteristic of breathing sound during sleep, without apnea, hypoventilation, or interrupted sleep. It may reduce the percentage of sleep and increase microarousals due to breathing effort or gas exchange. A range of questionnaires have been validated and adapted to the pediatric population to screen for patients who require laboratory testing. The Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire (PSQ) screens for SDB and identifies primary signs such as snoring. RoncoLab is a mobile application that records and measures snoring intensity and frequency.

Aim: To compare the RoncoLab app and the PSQ regarding how efficiently they diagnose snoring.

Materials and method: This was an observational, analytical study of 31 children aged 7 to 11 years who visited the pediatric dental clinic at Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla, Mexico (BUAP). The PSQ was applied to diagnose SDB. Guardians were then instructed on how to download and use the mobile application to record data while the child was sleeping at home. Agreement between RoncoLab and the PSQ was analyzed statistically by Cohen's Kappa index at 95% confidence level.

Results: The Kappa index for identification of primary snoring was 0.743 (p<0.05). App sensitivity was 0.92, and specificity 0.82.

Conclusion: There is good agreement between PSQ and RoncoLab for diagnosing primary snoring, with acceptable sensitivity and specificity.