Validation of the French Version of the OSA-18 Questionnaire

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is characterized by repetitive partial and/or total closure of the upper airway during sleep, inducing oxygen desaturation and sleep disturbance. Its prevalence in the pediatric population is 1-5%. In children, OSA can have negative consequences on the cardiovascular system and on the neurocognitive development. It is essential to diagnose OSA and to treat it efficiently. The OSA-18 questionnaire assesses the symptômes of OSA in children and its repercussions. It is composed of 18 items scored on a Likert scale by caregivers. This system allows a more sensitive scoring than binary answers available in other questionnaires like the Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire. The OSA-18 questionnaire would thus be an interesting tool to use for evaluating treatment efficacy in interventional studies and in clinical practice. This questionnaire is not yet available in French. The main objective of this study is thus to evaluate the validity of a French version compared to the gold standard method to evaluate OSA: polysomnography.