An evaluation at the Sleep Disorders Center begins with completion of a detailed questionnaire that gathers information about your sleep patterns. Next comes an initial consultation with the medical director. In many instances, one visit is sufficient for a diagnosis to be made and a treatment plan formulated. For some patients, however, more extensive testing is required. If an all-night sleep study is required, it is performed in our home-like sleep suites right at the Center.
The all-night sleep study is a safe and completely painless technique by which physiological functions in sleep are measured. Patients spend one or more nights at the Center, during which a series of measurements are taken with sophisticated monitoring devices. Patients arrive at the Center in the evening and leave the following morning; it is usually not necessary to miss a day of work.
During sleep testing, the activities that go on in your body during sleep (brain waves, muscle movement, eye movements, breathing through your mouth and nose, snoring, heart rate and leg movements) are monitored by small metal discs called electrodes applied to your head and skin with an adhesive. Flexible elastic belts around your chest and abdomen measure your breathing. A clip on your earlobe or index finger measures your heart rate and the level of oxygen in your blood. None of these devices are painful and all are designed to be as comfortable as possible.
In the course of your night at the Center, more than 1,000 pages of data are collected, along with a complete video tape record. This data is thoroughly reviewed by our expert staff and when necessary, by additional consultants. A detailed final report is usually ready within one week. Our sleep specialist will then directly share with your health care provider the results of the interpretation and treatment recommendations if a sleep disorder is diagnosed. You will then have a follow-up visit with your physician to discuss the results.