Some symptoms of common sleep disorders include snoring, waking up gasping for air, daily headaches, and daytime fatigue. About 50 to 70 million American men and women are also suffering from the same or similar chronic sleep disorders. Often if your doctor suspects a sleep disorder he will prescribe an overnight sleep study. During this study a tracker monitors biological sleep behavior which can be analysed to identify and diagnose sleep disorders.
What Is Sleep Apnea?
Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder that occurs when the muscles in your throat relax during deep sleep, collapsing the airway and preventing you from breathing until you wake up and start breathing again. This causes hundreds of interruptions in your sleep, preventing you from achieving the health benefits of the deepest stages of sleep. If it is left untreated, sleep apnea can lead to loud snoring, daytime fatigue and sleepiness, or more serious problems like heart trouble or high blood pressure.
What Is A Sleep Apnea Test?
In earlier days, Sleep Apnea Tests were conducted overnight in sleep clinics after a physician's referral. For an in-lab sleep test, the patient must make arrangements, pack an overnight bag and arrive at the clinic in the evening. Patients will be hooked to several medical monitors including ones that monitor brain waves, heart rate, blood oxygen levels and more. Then they are asked to sleep while sleep specialists monitor their sleep patterns and health vitals throughout the night. The equipment captures data on body movements, snoring, breathing, and heart rate. Today there are more convenient options to in-lab tests. A home sleep study is a more preferable option. For instance, patients who believe that they might be suffering from a sleep disorder can make their exploratory doctor appointment through a telehealth portal. The patient signs in for a virtual face-to-face discussion with the physician. After discussing symptoms, the physician sends a referral for a home sleep test electronically. After that the device is shipped directly to the patient’s home. The patient puts on the device for the monitoring before sleep. The next day, the patient mails back the device in the pre-labeled package. Sleep technicians pull the data off the device and send it to the physician for review.
What Is The Difference Between a Home Sleep Study And In-Lab Sleep Study?
- Diagnostic capacity for In-Lab sleep study are central, complex, obstructive sleep apnea(OSA), insomnia, REM sleep behavior disorder and sleep related seizure disorders and in home sleep study only obstructive sleep apnea is diagnosed.
- In-Lab sleep study works better for children, adolescents and patients with severe comorbidities and in-home sleep study those who live in remote areas, suffering from only OSA and does not have any complicated health history.
- Equipment needed for the In-Lab sleep study includes a CPAP machine, chest belt, nasal cannula and electrodes to measure brain waves, oxygen level, and heart rate and leg movements. For the home sleep study the equipment needed includes a pulse oximeter, chest belt, nasal cannula and chest sensor.
- In-Lab sleep studies can cost $1,500 to $15,000 but for home sleep study the average cost is around $200.
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