Sleep disorders in Cuban professsional drivers: A pilot study
Keywords:
professional drivers, polysomnography, STOP-Bang questionnaire, Epworth sleepiness scale, insomnia severity index, obstructive sleep apnea, occupational healthAbstract
Introduction: Humans spend approximately one-third of their lives sleeping. The magnitude of sleep disorders has led to their recognition as a public health problem.
Objective: To characterize sleep disorders in Cuban professional drivers using clinical surveys and polysomnography.
Methods: A cross-sectional study of 10 professional drivers conducted between April 2021 and August 2023, using a clinical-electrophysiological protocol that prominently featured polysomnography.
Results: The drivers were predominantly male, aged 40-59, with arterial hypertension being the most frequent personal medical history (60%). The STOP-Bang questionnaire indicated a high risk of obstructive sleep apnea in 70% of participants, which correlated with body mass index. In contrast, the Epworth Sleepiness Scale and the Insomnia Severity Index revealed a lower degree of risk for insomnia and excessive daytime sleepiness. polysomnography confirmed obstructive sleep apnea in 60% of the drivers. Notably, all drivers had at least one or more polysomnography parameters outside the normal range and exhibited altered sleep architecture.
Conclusions: The sample's composition—entirely male, with hypertension and overweight, combined with the age profile—may explain the high prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea, as detected by the STOP-Bang questionnaire and confirmed by polysomnography. This finding represents a serious occupational health and road safety concern.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Ana Calzada Reyes, Lidia Esther Charroó Ruiz, José Manuel Antelo Cordovés, Edilberto Zaragoza Gutiérrez, Odalys Puentes Corrales, Adonisbel Valero Sánchez, Lídice Galán García
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