Excessive sleepiness, difficulty concentrating, or can't stay asleep? Sleep disorders are one of the leading causes of decreased alertness, decreased work productivity, tardiness, job-related accidents, motor vehicle accidents. Some sleep disorders can also promote significant illnesses, such as weight gain and digestive problems, increased risk of developing high blood pressure, heart attack, and stroke. Sleep deprivation often promotes mood disorders and irritability. REGULAR, ADEQUATE, RESTFUL SLEEP IS REQUIRED FOR GOOD PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH - IT IS A NECESSITY NOT A LUXURY!
Expert evaluation is the best first step to getting a better nights sleep. The good news is that most people with sleep disorders can be significantly helped with appropriate evaluation by a board certified sleep specialist.
IF YOU FREQUENTLY HAVE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING
SYMPTOMS WE HIGHLY RECOMMEND
A SLEEP DISORDERS EVALUATION:
| Sudden weakness when emotional (head nodding, slurred speech, knees buckling, hand or arm weakness) | ||
| Snoring, gasping for breath, pauses in breathing (during sleep or while falling asleep) | ||
| Difficulty getting to sleep or awakening and being unable to get back to sleep | ||
| Uncomfortable sensation in your legs or arms, when sitting or lying down | ||
| Increased consumption of tobacco or caffeine to stay awake or alert | ||
| Frequent use of sleeping pills to initiate or maintain sleep | ||
| Difficulty staying awake and concentrating during the day | ||
| Frequent leg, arm or body jerks during sleep | ||
| Falling asleep at inappropriate times | ||
| Waking up with a sore and or dry throat | ||
| Waking up still feeling tired | ||
| Waking up with a headache | ||
| Hot and sweaty during sleep | ||
| Frequent awakenings | ||
| Bed wetting |
RECLAIM YOUR BEST ASSET,
REGULAR & RESTFUL SLEEP
This information brought to you by THE
SLEEP-ALERTNESS DISORDERS CENTER,
Directed by a board certified sleep disorders specialist with more than 22 years
experience.
Call us at: 303-671-0977
Sleep problems can affect job performance, safety (increase driving and work accidents) and sometimes promote potentially life-threatening medical conditions; affect mood, ability to learn, concentrate, and in children can promote hyperactivity, and sometimes affect growth and health. Below is a list of symptoms caused by common, but serious, sleep disorders. If you have noted any of these symptoms occurring frequently, a sleep disorder evaluation by a board certified sleep specialist is highly recommended.
Select the number estimating the severity of the symptom that best describes
you.
Not Present: 0, Mild: 1 - 3, Moderate: 4 - 6, Severe: 7 - 10
1. Excessive Sleepiness: difficulty concentrating
and staying awake during the day.
Severity:
Examples: Adult: falling asleep during meetings
or at a stop light, still sleepy after 8 hrs of sleep.
need to drink many cups of coffee, smoke many cigarettes to concentrate & be alert.
Child: falling asleep during school classes, when sitting still, riding in a car or
cannot sit still!
craves caffeinated drinks and/or sweets!
2. Snoring: loud snoring, gasping or pauses in breathing during sleep. Severity:
3. Hot and Sweaty: become hot and sweaty during sleep, often kick off the covers. Severity:
4. Headaches: wake up with headaches. Severity:
5. Restless Legs: have an uncomfortable feeling in legs, cannot keep legs still; swollen legs & feet. Severity:
6. Leg or Body Jerks: kick, move legs or arms or body jerks frequently during sleep. Severity:
7. Sudden Weakness: when laughing, angry, sad, surprised, during sports
or when emotional.
Severity:
Examples: *when laughing you cannot hold your head up or your knees buckle
*when telling a joke, you get to the punch line and then cannot say it
*if you fall or collapse, you are unable to speak or move, but you can hear
and know that you have not fallen asleep or fainted.
8. Naps: a) need a 1 hour or more nap each day, but are still tired. Severity:
b) need 2 or more short naps each day and feel refreshed after each nap for awhile. Severity:
9. Bedwetting: wet the bed a little or a lot before awaken to use the bathroom. Severity:
10. Insomnia: take sleeping pills or alcohol to get to sleep on most nights. Severity:
11. Teeth Grinding: chipped, worn teeth, awaken with sore jaw or bitten cheek or tongue. Severity:
12. Frequent awakenings during the night. Severity:
13. Swollen legs or feet. Severity:
14. Other: describe other frequent sleep or medical problems:
Severity:
When do you usually go to bed:
get up: hours of sleep:Number of times you get up to use the bathroom during the night:
What is your : Height:
Weight: Age: Sex:Name:
Email Address: Phone number (area code first):Call us at ( 303) 671 - 0977 to schedule an appointment.
Office Evaluation Consultation:
First Office Visit: All patients meet with
the Director (sleep specialist), to review the patient's sleep problems, medical
and life style history and to give appropriate recommendations (which may
include sleep tests) and a daily sleep-symptom log to chart the patient's
progress. Summary report, detailing the patient's sleep and medical history,
will be composed and sent to the patient, referring physician and/or family
physician.
Follow-up Office Visit with the Director: to follow patients' progress, as
needed.
Sleep Tests:
Diagnostic Tests:
Those patients needing sleep tests will be scheduled for one or more of the
following:
Overnight polysomnogram (PSG) Sleep Test: Diagnostic test that assess the sleep latency, quantity and quality of sleep, frequency and severity of sleep disorders to assess or rule out sleep apnea, movement disorders, teeth grinding, other disturbances during sleep, signs of chronic pain, etc.
Daytime Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT): objectively assesses the severity of daytime sleepiness and assess or rule out narcolepsy.
Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) Titration: If a patient has diagnosed sleep apnea-hypopnea, the safest, fastest treatment available is CPAP. Optimal CPAP pressure(s) is determined by an overnight PSG test while using CPAP to find the lowest pressure(s) that prevent sleep apnea-hypopnea events in all stages of sleep and in all sleeping positions.
Post-Surgery PSG Test: those patient who prefer to treat their obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea surgically, should have a post surgery PSG test about 2 months after surgery to verify the success of the surgery, since surgery fails in approximately 67-50% of the cases, although it usually stops the snoring sound. Therefore CPAP treatment of sleep apnea-hypopnea is necessary for those who are not sufficiently improved by surgery.
Daytime Multiple Wakeful Test (MWT): objectively assess the ability of a person to stay awake in 4-5 challenges to stay awake, lying down in a darkened room.
