Modern lifestyle leads to several sleep-related disorders, which is worryingly on the rise. “Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)” is the most common sleep-related breathing disorder, which causes one to repeatedly stop and start breathing while asleep. This occurs when the throat muscles relax and block the airway.
Sleep disorders are diagnosed by a “Sleep Study”, which is a diagnostic test that tracks and records the activity of multiple body systems while you sleep, including your brain, heart and respiratory system, and gives a comprehensive view of the quality of your sleep.
The “Sleep Lab” at Kauvery Hospital, Trichy is a facility that offers the right environment for sleep studies. There are various levels of sleep study – from level 1 to level 4, level 1 being the advanced level and level 4 being the basic level. The sleep studies being done at this lab are Level 1 studies, which is the Gold standard. This is the first of its kind in South Tamilnadu, the others being located in Chennai and Coimbatore.
Patients requiring sleep study need to be admitted to the lab and will stay overnight. They normally arrive around 8 pm, and after checking in they will be asked to lie down on their bed and sensors are attached at various places on their body to monitor the brain, heart and respiratory system. They then wake up in the morning and after the sensors have been disconnected they leave. The results are made available in the next few days, and depending on the results further course of treatment is recommended.
Excessive snoring is one of the symptoms of Sleep Apnea, which could be due to various reasons - deviated nasal septum, tonsil adenoids (growth in the tonsils), being overweight and fatty around the neck (this causes the neck to become small and the respiratory passages to become narrow), narrow jaw, etc. A problem with deviated nasal septum and tonsil adenoids could be treated with surgery. For those overweight around the neck region, which is the case for a majority of the population, CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) therapy is recommended. A CPAP machine generates pressurized air that is carried by a tube to a mask on the person’s face, and this steady flow of air holds the airway open during sleep to prevent breathing disruptions.
Speaking of this, Dr. Ramasubramaniam K., Consultant Pulmonologist, said that every day they diagnose and treat several cases of snoring and sleep apnea, and he went on to narrate two cases that he recently handled: “A young man aged 32, not obese, a normal fit person, approached us with a complaint of severe snoring. He was diagnosed with severe OSA by sleep study and further evaluations revealed problems involving a deviated nasal septum and tonsils. He was recommended a surgery to correct the issues and he is now able to sleep well and actively function the next day.
Another patient was a man aged 60+, an obese person, with complaints of hypertension and diabetes, and his wife complained of his severe snoring. He was diagnosed with severe OSA, however further evaluations did not reveal any aberrations, but only that he was overweight with a fleshy mass around the neck region leading to airways compression. He was given CPAP therapy for two weeks, at the end of which he was overjoyed that he had not had a real sleep like this in a long time, and said that he felt a great sense of relief! He bought the CPAP machine right away and started using it every day.”
He also said that initially people hesitate to use the machine because they are scared, or wonder if they can tolerate it, or what others will think of them. It takes a few days for them to get used to it, but once they experience the relief after using it regularly, they regard it like a real boon!
Dr. V. Senthilvelmurugan, Medical Administrator & Mr. R. Anbuchezian, the Facility Director, praised Dr. K. Ramasubramaniam for successfully performing the OSA procedures. Kauvery Hospital in Trichy Tennur is the only hospital in the area with a sleep lab facility. Now, patients can receive consultation and treatment for sleep apnea right here in Trichy.
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