Epworth Sleepiness Scale
The Epworth Sleepiness Scale asks how likely a person is to doze in eight everyday situations. This page is for clinics evaluating the measure on Lirena. It is not a sleep study and not a test to complete here.
Overview
What is the ESS?
The ESS, developed by Murray Johns, is a compact self-report of typical daytime sleepiness. Clinics use it as sleep-intake context. A high or low result is not a diagnosis of sleep apnoea, narcolepsy, or any other sleep disorder.
Development and clinical use
Johns introduced the ESS so that clinics could record how often people doze in ordinary situations rather than relying on a single tiredness question. It is widely used in sleep medicine. Confirm the current official form before a live pathway.
- Source instrument
- 8 everyday situations
- Mode
- Patient self-report
- Typical use
- Sleep-clinic intake
- Not a sleep study
- No physiology recorded
- Clinical role
- Sleepiness context
- Diagnosis
- Not established by score
Administration
A focused client experience
ESS is completed as a focused self-report and stored for clinician review. This public page does not collect answers or return a score.
- One question at a time with visible progress
- Large keyboard-operable response choices
- Previous, next, and answer-review steps
- Clear confirmation that results go to the clinic
The illustration shows layout only. It does not reproduce ESS item wording.
Report showcase
Designed to make evidence easy to review
The downloadable synthetic example illustrates report layout using invented response patterns, without patient data or instrument questions.
- Named instrument, version, and provenance
- Item-level response pattern without source wording
- Methodology, references, and clinical boundary
- Responsible clinician review rather than automated conclusions
Clinician review required
Methodology
Understand the measure and its scoring conventions
Published scoring conventions may exist in official materials. This public page does not independently verify scoring, cutoffs, or a production scoring rule. Use the official form and scoring instructions for the version you intend to use.
References
- Original ESS paperJohns MW. A new method for measuring daytime sleepiness: the Epworth Sleepiness Scale. Sleep. 1991;14(6):540-545.
- Official ESS informationJohns MW. Epworth Sleepiness Scale.
Questions
What clinics ask before they evaluate the ESS
These answers stay inside educational catalogue scope. They do not replace official manuals or clinician judgement.
Does a high ESS score diagnose sleep apnoea?
No. Daytime sleepiness has many causes. The ESS is a self-report screen, not a diagnostic sleep study.
Can I complete the ESS on this page?
No. This is educational catalogue information. Lirena does not provide a public sleepiness test here.
How is ESS used on Lirena?
As a sleep-intake self-report for clinician review, together with sleep history and investigation as appropriate.
Which ESS form should a clinic use?
Confirm the current official materials for the form you intend. This page does not assign the measure.