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. 2022 Aug 1;18(8):1921-1931.
doi: 10.5664/jcsm.10024.

"It made all the difference": a qualitative study of parental experiences with pediatric obstructive sleep apnea detection

Sarah M Honaker  1 , Akila Gopalkrishnan  2 , Maria Brann  3 , Sarah Wiehe  1 , Ann A Clark  1 , Alicia Chung  4
Affiliations

"It made all the difference": a qualitative study of parental experiences with pediatric obstructive sleep apnea detection

Sarah M Honaker et al. J Clin Sleep Med. .

Abstract

Study objectives: To assess parental experience of their child's obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) detection process and inform the development of interventions and health communication strategies to improve OSA detection.

Methods: Semistructured interviews were conducted with 30 parents of children (ages 3-14) who snored and were referred for an overnight polysomnogram (PSG). Parents (60.0% Black race, 93.3% mothers) described how their child was referred for PSG and their perceptions and feelings throughout the detection process. Parents also completed an OSA knowledge measure. Interview data were analyzed using a descriptive approach and thematic analysis was conducted using the NVivo 12 software system.

Results: Twenty-one themes were identified across 5 categories (first steps; PSG facilitators and barriers; health information; health care experiences; parent experiences). Respondents experienced multiple pathways to OSA detection, with more than half of referrals initiated by parental concerns (vs. screening efforts). Parents reported a willingness to take any necessary steps to help their child. Both barriers and facilitators to completing a PSG were described. Parents observed both nighttime and daytime symptoms related to OSA in their child but often did not connect the symptoms to each other until later in the process. Participants had varying degrees of OSA knowledge, with a mean knowledge score of 56% correct (range 10%-90% correct).

Conclusions: Parental experiences highlight aspects of the health care system that are both effective and ineffective in detecting children with OSA. Implications include a need for strategies to promote timely detection and to provide parents with accurate information about pediatric OSA.

Citation: Honaker SM, Gopalkrishnan A, Brann M, Wiehe S, Clark AA, Chung A. "It made all the difference": a qualitative study of parental experiences ith pediatric obstructive sleep apnea detection. J Clin Sleep Med. 2022;18(8):1921-1931.

Keywords: children; early detection of disease; obstructive sleep apnea; qualitative research; sleep; sleep-disordered breathing; youth.

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Conflict of interest statement

All authors have seen and approved the final manuscript. Institution Where the Work was Performed: Indiana University School of Medicine. The study and Dr. Honaker’s time was funded, in part, with support from the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute, funded in part by grant number UL1TR002529 from the National Institutes of Health, National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, Clinical and Translational Sciences Award. Dr. Honaker’s time was also supported by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health under award number K23HL150299. The authors are grateful to the study participants for sharing their experiences We also acknowledge the technical expertise and efforts of the individual members of the Child Health Informatics and Research Development Lab (CHIRDL) team and the Pediatric Research Network (PReSNet) at Indiana University School of Medicine. Study data were collected and managed using REDCap electronic data capture tools hosted at Indiana University.1,2 REDCap (Research Electronic Data Capture) is a secure, web-based software platform designed to support data capture for research studies, providing 1) an intuitive interface for validated data capture; 2) audit trails for tracking data manipulation and export procedures; 3) automated export procedures for seamless data downloads to common statistical packages; and 4) procedures for data integration and interoperability with external sources. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. The authors report no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Flow chart of child status in OSA detection at the time of the interview.
OSA = obstructive sleep apnea, PSG = polysomnogram.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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