How A Sleep Center Can Help You Battle Sleep Disorders

In response to people becoming more aware of the serious health risks associated with sleep related breathing disorders (ie, sleep apnea) sleep centers are rapidly being built across the country to meet the growing demand.

A sleep center or sleep disorder clinic helps those suffering from sleep related problems. Patients will usually spend a night’s time at the center in order for trained physicians to diagnose any sleeping problems.

Why And When To Use A Sleep Center

A sleep study center is usually visited by persons seeking to have their sleep disorders diagnosed. Common sleep disorders are:

• Insomnia
• Sleep Apnea
• Restless Leg Syndrome
• Narcolepsy and
• Sleepwalking

Determining The Best Sleep Center To Visit

Selecting a sleep study center is not a difficult task once you are aware of the questions to ask. Questions to consider:

1. Is the sleep center accredited by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine?
2. Is the sleep center designed to only evaluate sleep disorders?
3. How many patients are assigned to a sleep technician each night? (A sleep technician should handle no more than two patients per night)

It is also important to determine ownership of the center you will be visiting; this will provide insight as to what the center’s main focus is. For instance:

• Sleep doctors generally own centers to control the quality of the testing process.
• Hospitals/Healthcare systems generally use sleep centers to direct perspective patients to their own health facilities.
• Corporate owned entities with multiple locations and non-doctor owned facilities are generally governed by the profit motive. A significant part of their business is selling equipment needed to help remedy the sleep disorder.

Important Questions To Ask At a Sleep Clinic

The following questions are important to ask when you are trying to decide on a sleep center to use:

1. Is the sleep center’s medical director a certified sleep doctor?
2. Are follow-up appointments suggested for tested patients and are the appointments with a doctor sleep specialist?
3. Is the sleep specialist available to meet prior to beginning any testing?
4. Is the analysis of the test done by a doctor who is a certified sleep specialist?
5. Will you have the option of becoming the patient of the doctor performing the analysis?

If the answer to most of the questions above is “Yes” than you have found a quality sleep disorder clinic ready to help diagnose your sleeping condition. Check out our sleeping disorders section which contains more information that may help you identify your sleep disorder.