Snoring has long been a joke in our culture, but it can be far more serious than that. Snoring can be disruptive to marriages and families, and it can be a symptom of a condition called obstructive sleep apnea, or OSA. People with OSA appear to hold their breath repeatedly during the night, then abruptly begin breathing again, often with a snort. As a result, these people do not get enough oxygen as they sleep and may wake with morning headaches. Also, they are not able to maintain the deeper restful stages of sleep and wake feeling unrefreshed. Sometimes, they wake feeling more tired than when they went to bed. OSA often leads to excessive daytime sleepiness, dozing off inappropriately, falling asleep when working or driving, lowered energy levels, memory loss, and depression and anxiety. OSA has even been linked to death by cardiovascular disease. OSA elevates blood pressure, aggravates diabetes, and can cause gastroesophageal reflux disorder (GERD, or heartburn). And most of the chronic pain disorders such as fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, and multiple sclerosis (MS) can be aggravated by OSA. Even the immune system can be suppressed by inadequate quality sleep.

The first step is to call our office for an examination, as an accurate diagnosis is essential to appropriate treatment of a sleep disorder. Depending on the examination results, we may need to refer you for further medical evaluation. Often an overnight sleep study, called a polysomnogram, needs to be scheduled at a sleep center. In some cases, overnight home testing can be done.