subject: Sleep Apnea Study [print this page] If you believe you are suffering from sleep apnea, you will probably need to stay the night at a sleep lab and undergo a sleep apnea study before you can determine what kind of treatment is appropriate for your specific case.
Sleep apnea is a fairly common sleeping disorder in which an individual's breathing becomes shallow, or ceases altogether, one or more times throughout the night. These pauses can last anywhere from a few seconds up to a few minutes, and can occur 5 to 30 times an hour.
Most people with sleep apnea are unaware of their condition(as well as their doctors), and are usually notified by a family member or partner. Symptoms to look for are severe snoring, morning headaches, dry throat, irritability, mood swings, and daytime drowsiness.
If you notify your doctor of these symptoms, after looking them over along with family history and a physical exam, he may ask you to have a sleep apnea study.
A sleep study is the most accurate way to detect many different sleeping disorders in individuals. A polysomnogram is the most common type of study used for sleep apnea and can be administered either in a sleep lab, or in some cases at home.
With a polysomnogram they will be monitoring your brain activity, eye movement, breathing, heart rate, blood pressure, and the amount of air your lungs are taking in while asleep. Your sleep specialist will attach sensors upon your scalp, finger, face and chest, and monitor you while sleeping throughout the night.
This information collected will be reviewed, and the specialist along with your doctor, will determine whether or not you have sleep apnea. If they do find that you suffer from this disorder, your doctor will discuss the best possible solution that will work for you.
A CPAP(continuous positive airway pressure) machine is the most common treatment for sleep apnea. This is a mask which uses air pressure to keep your airway open while sleeping. The amount of pressure you need will be determined by the data recorded during the sleep apnea study.
Depending on the severity of the issue, lifestyle changes, wearing mouth pieces, breathing devices, and surgery are all other types of solutions.
Sleep apnea can be a very serious disorder if left untreated, as it is reported here. However, with the increasing efficiency of sleep apnea study as well as all other sleeping disorders, the treatments are becoming more effective every day. These have shown to greatly improve one's quality of sleep, and overall quality of life by a great deal.
