TY - JOUR T1 - Morbidity and mortality of sleep-disordered breathing: obstructive sleep apnoea and car crash JF - Breathe JO - breathe SP - 115 LP - 119 DO - 10.1183/18106838.0602.115 VL - 6 IS - 2 AU - B. Phillips Y1 - 2009/12/01 UR - http://breathe.ersjournals.com/content/6/2/115.abstract N2 - Educational aims To review the results of USA Department of Transportation meta-analysis regarding obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) and car crash risk. To discuss factors beyond OSA that increase the risk of crash. Summary Untreated OSA increases the risk of having a car crash two-fold. In addition, the severity of sleep-disordered breathing, degree of oxygen desaturation, self-reported sleepiness and body mass index (BMI) increase the risk of crash in OSA patients. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) reduces the risk of car crash. The data are insufficient for other forms of treatment to date. Sleep loss, medications and driving conditions have also been found to be factors affecting the risk of crash. ER -