A few days back a couple came to Desun Hospital where the wife was diagnosed with High Blood Pressure.When doctor asked her to take good rest and have sound sleep in the night, she burst out laughing saying “then first get me divorced from this man or help me to buy a new house. Because all I can do at night is to curse him for snoring”. The man clearly was embarrassed and trying to defend himself said “I work the whole day so snoring comes naturally”.
Our Doctor at Desun hospital didn’t take this as a joke and told the man is suffering from a sleep disorder called “Sleep Apnea”
Completely unaware of the disorder they asked him what that even supposed to mean. And here goes the explanation. Sleep is associated with a state where all your muscles are relaxed and the environmental stimuli are less perceived and Apnea is a Greek word which means “Without Breath”.
Obstructive
Central
Mixed
The major symptoms includes short pauses in breath during sleep, loud snoring and chocking sensation. An early detection of Sleep Apnea is highly recommended by Doctors as it is linked with an irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes.
There are many reasons for interrupted sleep and a list of tests are available for assessing a person for sleep disorders. Talk about accuracy a Polysomnograph or Sleep Study tops the chart.
The specialist Doctor explained that, Sleep study records different body functions like eye movement, electrical activity of the brain, muscle activity, heart rate, respiratory effort, airflow and blood oxygen levels during the sleep. The day after sleep study, another test is conducted called Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT). This test is conducted with an approach to rule out other sleep disorders where the speed of falling asleep is recorded. Once these tests are conducted the findings are clubbed with patient’s Medical History and Physical Examination and thus the line of treatment is decided.
The couple requested the doctor to prescribe some medicine. But the doctor suggested otherwise. At times just a mild change in the behaviour or lifestyle of the patient is all that’s required. Avoiding Sleeping pills, alcohol and tobacco make the airway more likely to keep from collapsing during sleep that extends pauses in breathing.
The Doctor told that patients of Sleep Apnea should always note that no one treatment is effective for everyone. Thus the line of treatment differs from patient. After the session with the doctor the couple left the chamber with all their doubts cleared. Desun promises to provide all facilities under one roof. As Desun Hospital is a NABH accredited Hospital, all the tests and treatment facilities is under one roof.