Sleep Apnea Update

At the end of last year two Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) advisory committees (the Medical Review Board and the Motor Safety Carrier Advisory Committee) provided their approval on recommendations regarding which truck operators should be screened for obstructive sleep apnea before being cleared to drive.

The final version of the recommendations retains the conditional criteria to refer truckers for sleep apnea testing, based mostly around their BMI and other factors that could indicate obstructive sleep apnea.

Truck operators with a Body Mass Index of 40 or higher would be flagged for sleep apnea screening. Those truckers would receive a 90-day medical certification, during which time they must have an in-lab or at-home sleep study. If diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea, they would need to begin treatment within the 90-day period.

Truckers with a BMI of 33 or higher would also be subject to screening if they meet at least three of the following criteria:

**Is 42 or older
**Is male
**Is a postmenopausal female
**Has diabetes
**Has high blood pressure
**Has a neck size greater than 17 inches (males) or 15.5 inches (females)
**Has a history of heart disease
**Snores loudly
**Has had witnessed apneas
**Has a small airway to the lungs
**Has untreated hypothyroidism
**Has micrognathia (undersized jaw) or retrognathia (clinical terminology for a kind of overbite)

Such truckers would receive the same 90-day certification during which time they must have an in-lab or at-home sleep study. If diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea, they would need to begin treatment within the 90-day period.

Truckers diagnosed with moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea could receive a medical certification from their examiner that lasts no longer than a year, rather than the standard two-year certification.

Toronto Rehab Foundation is in the process of setting up a study to determine the extent of sleep apnea in the trucking industry in Canada. It will also look at whether there is a causal connection between sleep apnea and accidents.