Diagnosing Obstructive Sleep Apnea
Sleep Apnea is diagnosed by patient’s medical and family history, a physical examination and findings from sleep studies. Usually, the primary care doctor evaluates the symptoms first and if there is a need, refers patient to a sleep specialist.
These specialists ask questions that help them determine how often and loudly a person snores or make gasping or choking sounds during sleep. Often patients are not aware of such symptoms and presence of close family member or bed partner is required to report them.
In the physical exam, doctor checks mouth, nose and throat for extra or large tissues. If any such deformity is found, a detailed test is conducted through the sleep behavior analysis. It is the most accurate test for diagnosing sleep apnea as it captures what happens to the breathing while the person is asleep. Sleep study is often done in a sleep centre or a sleep lab, which is the part of a hospital and requires a person to stay overnight in the sleep centre. The instrument used to study Sleep Apnea is called polysomnogram and it records the brain activity, breathing, heart rate, eye and other muscle activities, flow of oxygen in lungs while patient is sleeping and the oxygen amount in the blood.
A sleep specialist reviews the results of the tests to determine whether the patient has Sleep Apnea and its severity. Based on such findings, a treatment is planned to provide relief to the person. Eventually the sleep specialist will furnish you with a prescription for a certain type of machine (Fixed Pressure\Automatic), the appropriate pressure range, special needs (ramp time, humidification etc.) and, if discovered, the best type of mask for your needs (full-face, nasal mask, pillows etc.)
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