Sleep Study Center

Sleep apnea is the most common chronic illness in the United States. Testing in clinical sleep laboratories found that 24% of male adults and 9% of female adults have sleep apnea. This adds up to more than 30 million people in the United States. The precursor to sleep apnea, snoring, is even more prevalent affecting 50% of all adults. Over half of all people with sleep apnea are 35 years or older and overweight. An estimated 80-90% of affected people are undiagnosed and untreated.

Three types of sleep apnea:

•Obstructive Sleep Apnea-the absence of airflow through the nose and mouth despite persistent and increasing efforts to breathe
•Central Sleep Apnea-absence of any effort to breathe and consequently an absence of airflow through nose and mouth
•Mixed Sleep Apnea-a combination of the two types in a single episode

How is Sleep Apnea Diagnosed

In addition to your Primary Care Physician, a pulmonologist with specialized training in sleep disorders may order a sleep study. This is a test that records a variety of body functions during sleep such as the electrical activity of the brain, eye movements, muscles activity, heart rate, respiratory effort, airflow, snoring and blood oxygen levels.

For more information on setting up a sleep study, contact Shannon Bishop at (712) 623-7289.