REM Sleep Diagnostics
patient success stories

Some of our patients have graciously agreed to share their stories here. Read on to find out how sleep disorders affected their lives, and what they did to overcome them.

Patient Profile
Patient: 45-year-old female administrative assistant
The patient often finds herself nodding off and sluggish in the afternoon while typing, and frequently does not feel rested despite going to bed on time. She has trouble concentrating at work and makes more mistakes than she should.

Symptoms
The patient is in bed by 10 p.m. and up by 6 a.m. It is hard for her to fall asleep because her legs are uncomfortable and she feels the urge to keep moving them. She wakes up frequently, and her husband reports that she snores loudly, swings her arms and sometimes shouts. She has also fallen out of bed. The patient is tired after getting up, and naps once or twice a day.

Diagnosis
The patient met with the sleep specialist at REM Sleep Diagnostics, who listened to her symptoms. The patient complained that she felt an urge to move her legs that couldn’t be resisted, and experienced a feeling of “crawling” under her skin. She explained that her symptoms come on while she is sitting later in day or evening, and often after lying down. The discomfort is generally relieved by movement or walking. She also expressed having trouble falling asleep due to a “tingling” sensation in her legs.

The REM Sleep Diagnostics sleep specialist recommended an overnight sleep study, and after reviewing the results, diagnosed the patient with Restless Legs Syndrome or RLS.

Treatment
The doctor discussed good sleep hygiene with the patient, and prescribed a course of medication to alleviate the pain and tingling sensations she was experiencing. She was asked to stop using over-the-counter sleeping pills and avoid caffeine because these things were making the problem worse and interfering with a long-term solution to her RLS.

For questions or further discussion of the findings in this case study, or to refer a patient to REM Sleep Diagnostics, call today, or visit www.MySleepScore.com

Patient Profile
Patient: 59-year-old male, real estate broker

Symptoms
The patient has trouble waking up in the morning, even after 7 or more hours sleep. Once he gets up and has a cup of coffee, he feels normal but frequently yawns and always takes a nap in the afternoon. Without his nap, he finds himself dozing off at his desk or during meetings.

The patient can’t remember a time when he hasn’t felt this way. He sometimes finds it hard to concentrate or focus on certain tasks. His wife says he is often “grumpy” and has noticed him nodding off at stoplights while driving a car.

Diagnosis
The patient and his wife met with the sleep specialist at REM Sleep Diagnostics, who listened to their concerns. The patient complained of the following:
• His wife complains about his loud snoring and gasping sounds while he sleeps
• He has a hard time waking up • He feels tired even after 7 or more hours of sleep
• He often feels the need for an afternoon nap

The sleep specialist also paid special attention to the wife’s concerns about her husband’s drowsy driving and being overly emotional or “grumpy”.

The sleep specialist recommended an overnight sleep study to evaluate the patient’s sleep disorder, and after reviewing the results diagnosed him with Obstructive Sleep Apnea, or OSA. OSA is “sleep suffocation” due to collapse of the tongue and palate into the back of the throat, which blocks air movement. OSA is associated with loud snoring and gasping during sleep, it becomes worse with age and weight gain, and is linked to an increased risk of stroke and heart disease.

Treatment
The sleep specialist at REM Sleep Diagnostics prescribed a CPAP machine for the patient. This device requires him to wear a small mask over his nose during sleep; while a small machine on his nightstand applies slight air pressure to keep his airway open.

It took the patient a couple of weeks to get accustomed to his new routine, but once he did he slept better, felt better during the day, and expressed that his high blood pressure was also under control. The patient expressed that his wife also sleeps much better because she no longer has to listen to his loud snoring and worry about his gasping and choking through the night.

For questions or further discussion of the findings in this case study, or to refer a patient to REM Sleep Diagnostics, call today, or visit www.MySleepScore.com