EPIDEMIOLOGY • ORIGINAL ARTICLE Is the knowledge and attitude of physicians in Nigeria adequate for the diagnosis and management of obstructive sleep apnea? Obianuju B. Ozoh 1 & Oluwadamilola O. Ojo 1 & Sandra O. Iwuala 1 & Ayesha O. Akinkugbe 1 & Olufemi O. Desalu 2 & Njideka U. Okubadejo 2 Received: 28 March 2016 /Revised: 18 August 2016 /Accepted: 7 September 2016 # Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2016 Abstract Purpose The knowledge and attitude of doctors in Nigeria towards obstructive sleep apnea is not known. We evaluated the level of knowledge and attitude regarding OSA among resident doctors in Internal Medicine and general practitioners in Nigeria. Methods A cross-sectional survey among doctors during con- tinuing medical education programs was conducted. The Obstructive Sleep Apnea Knowledge and Attitude (OSAKA) questionnaire was used to obtain information. Results Two hundred seventy-three doctors (235 resident doc- tors and 38 general practitioners) participated in the study. The mean knowledge score was 10.7 ± 2.6 (out of a maximum possible of 18) for all participants corresponding to 59 ± 14.4 % knowledge. There was no significant difference in the mean score of resident doctors (10.8 ± 2.5) compared to general practitioners (10.0 ± 2.8), (t = 2.6, p = 0.10). Over 70 % of the participants wrongly responded that uvuloplasty was an effective treatment and less than 40 % correctly an- swered that continuous positive airway pressure treatment was first line for severe obstructive sleep apnea. The mean score on the attitude segment was 3.4 ± 0.6 (maximum possible score of 5) for all participants and 3.4 ± 0.6 and 3.3 ± 0.5, respec- tively, for the residents and the general practitioners (p = 0.47). Increasing age was negatively associated with level of knowl- edge, while increasing number of years in medical practice and higher level of residency training was positively associat- ed with higher knowledge scores. Conclusion The knowledge of obstructive sleep apnea among resident doctors and general practitioners in Nigeria is inade- quate. There is need to improve training on sleep disorders in Nigeria both at continuing medical education programs and during residency training. Keywords Obstructive sleep apnea . Knowledge . Attitude . Doctors . Residency training . Nigeria Introduction Undiagnosed and untreated obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is associated with adverse health consequences. These include cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, depression, erectile dys- function, lack of libido, decreased intellectual functioning, and increased risk of road traffic accidents (RTA) [1–5]. It also poses significant economic burden on the individual and healthcare system [6]. About 2–5 % of adults are at risk of mild to moderate OSA but this prevalence is likely to vary across regions, based on the demographics of the population [7]. Although there are no epidemiological studies on the prevalence of diagnosed OSA in Nigeria, a number of studies have demonstrated that a sig- nificant proportion (20–40 %) of adults are at high risk of OSA based on questionnaire screening [8–12]. This burden is likely to increase in tandem with the reported rise in the prevalence of obesity (a major risk factor for OSA) among the Nigerian population [13]. OSA is generally undiagnosed worldwide and up to 82 % of men and 93 % of women with OSA remain undiagnosed even in developed countries [14, 15]. The problem of OSA underdiagnosis is likely to be more profound in developing * Obianuju B. Ozoh ujuozoh@yahoo.com; oozoh@unilag.edu.ng 1 Department of Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Lagos, Lagos State, Nigeria 2 Department of Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria Sleep Breath DOI 10.1007/s11325-016-1407-z