Sleep Lab
A good night's sleep is important to your well-being. Since most people spend about one third of their lives asleep, it's easy to see how the quality of sleep directly affects your everyday life.
Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is a disorder in which a person stops breathing for 10 seconds or more, up to several hundred times a night. The person has to wake up to breathe again and usually doesn't remember it. As sleep is disrupted night after night, progressive daytime sleepiness develops often leading to irritability, inattention and an inability to perform daytime functions effectively. Often family members first notice signs of sleep apnea - the extremely loud, heavy snoring, often interrupted by pauses and gasps.
» Questionnaire for Sleep Apnea Risk » The Epworth Sleepiness Scale
Sleep Apnea can lead to other serious conditions
In addition to causing daytime sleepiness and the inability to complete everyday functions, the periods of apnea can lead to high blood pressure, cardiac arrhythmias, stroke and other serious conditions. To address this problem and diagnose obstructive sleep apnea, Kent Hospital provides overnight sleep studies (polysomnography) in the Sleep Lab.
In addition, daytime nap studies are conducted to determine narcolepsy. Periodic limb movement syndrome can also be evaluated during a sleep study.
Diagnosis
When your physician suspects that you might be experiencing sleep apnea symptoms, a sleep study can be ordered to obtain an accurate diagnosis. You will be scheduled to spend the night in the Sleep Lab where your heart, breathing, brain waves and other vital signs will be monitored by sensors placed on your skin. The results are then evaluated by Sleep Lab physicians who are trained in sleep disorders medicine.
Once the diagnosis is established, treatment can be instituted. It may include changing or improving sleep habits, weight loss, medication, continuous positive airway pressure, surgery or mouth devices. Treatment depends upon the cause and severity of the sleep apnea as determined by careful analysis of the sleep study record.
The Sleep Lab at Kent Hospital
The Sleep Lab is fully accredited by the AASM and is staffed exclusively by registered sleep technologists. We have private, hotel-like rooms with full size beds, cable TV, phones and front door parking for your convenience. » What to Expect at the Sleep Lab » Types of Sleep Disorders » Patient Testimony
