New guide for obstructive sleep apnoea screening

Published: 01/08/2023

New guidance from the Centre for Perioperative Care (CPOC) will help improve the perioperative management of obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) in adults. The succinct one-page guide makes it easier for frontline healthcare workers to make ‘on-the-go’ decisions about screening and management of OSA.  

It is vital that patients are screened for OSA when considering surgery so they can reduce risk of complications. If patients undergo surgery with undiagnosed OSA they are at a substantially increased risk of complications. Routine screening is needed because a large proportion of patients with OSA are currently undiagnosed and are not receiving proper treatment.

This new guide seeks to make OAS screening more accessible for healthcare workers through its simplicity.