Sleep Apnea, although a serious sleep-related disorder, might easily go undiagnosed and untreated. This article details what this condition is and how it can be easily diagnosed and treated with the help of home sleep study devices.

What is Sleep Apnea and what are its symptoms?

Sleep apnea is a condition in which a person stops breathing periodically during sleep. This can happen anywhere from a few times to hundreds of times a night. In order to make the body breathe again, their brain is forced out of the deeper stages of sleep and they are partially awakened. This leads not only to the poor quality of sleep but the possibility of many other health issues. With breathing disruptions, there is a drop in the oxygen levels in the blood, which in turn causes strain on the heart and lungs. There are three types of sleep apnea- obstructive, mixed, and central. Of these, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is the most common and can often go unrecognized. This condition affects as many as 20 million Americans.

Obstructive sleep apnea is caused due to partial or complete airway blockage during sleep. 5-14 breathing cessations in an hour signal mild obstructive sleep apnea, while severe OSA is characterized by 30 or more cessation episodes. Some of the common symptoms include snoring, restless sleep, irritability, morning headaches, depression, and difficulty concentrating.

Diagnosing Sleep Apnea

In order to diagnose sleep apnea, a person’s sleep pattern for any given night needs to be captured accurately. Other than this, medical and family history and a physical exam are also useful. After a doctor evaluates you, you may then be referred to a sleep specialist. As far as the sleep study, a polysomnogram (PSG) is the most common. For this study, you sleep in a sleep lab and a sleep specialist will watch and monitor you through the night. You will have sensors attached to your scalp, face, chest, limbs, and a finger. These sensors measure heart rate, the amount of oxygen in your blood, and other information that will, together, tell your doctor if you have sleep apnea, and if so, how severe it is.

Home Test for Sleep Apnea

While useful, a sleep test is not necessarily the best way, or the best experience, for diagnosis. Imagine sleeping in unfamiliar surroundings, knowing that you are being watched, and having multiple sensors attached to your body. Sounds uncomfortable, doesn’t it? So how can you expect to get accurate results that depict your sleep pattern at home? To overcome this problem, we now have the option of using home sleep study equipment. This type of equipment allows you to conduct a sleep study on your own, from the comfort of your own room and own bed.

What’s more, this will allow you to get more accurate results, as it will more accurately capture your typical sleep pattern for the night. While there are many home test devices available today, the ones by VirtuOx, Inc. are highly recommended by medical professionals. At VirtuOx, we work hard to provide you with the best devices that surpass others in reliability and accuracy. Our line of home sleep study devices includes:

Alice NightOne - This device has three sensors and an auto-on recording feature that does not require the patient to click any “on” or “off” buttons. It provides seven channels of data for a clinician to evaluate.

ApneaLink Air - This is a compact, cost-efficient, easy-to-use device that provides five channels of data (respiratory effort, pulse, oxygen saturation, nasal flow, and snoring). It has a one-touch operation and a Test Complete light lets patients know when the evaluation has completed. It provides accurate and detailed information that can lead to a clear diagnosis.

WatchPat - This is a FDA-approved portable diagnostic home test device. Its unique feature is that it uses finger based physiology and innovative technology to enable simplicity and accuracy in OSA testing. While other devices may be more complicated and uncomfortable to use, WatchPat allows simple yet accurate testing.

As you can see, using any home test for sleep apnea allows you to get accurate results from the comfort of your own home so you can be on your way to treating sleep apnea if needed.

VirtuOx is the leader in home sleep tests and pulse oximetry.