By AMY RICKER
Great Bend Post
If you sleep well, count yourself lucky. 50-70 million people in the United States have been diagnosed with insomnia (do not stay asleep or can’t fall asleep). Additionally, half of the people who suffer from sleeping disorders such as sleep apnea don’t do anything about it.
In the past, patients who wanted to improve their sleep quality had to go into a sleep disorder clinic for a night and have their sleep patterns monitored. As technology advanced, patients were allowed to take the equipment home, sleep in their bed, and return the cumbersome monitors to have the information analyzed. But that’s all changed.
Pawnee Valley Community Hospital Sleep Lab Director Megan Donecker says the new home sleep study equipment is called WatchPat. WatchPat is easy to use with the patient merely downloading an app to their smartphone, wear the equipment at night, and the data is automatically uploaded to the app where the sleep lab can access it. The patient deletes the app from their phone and throws away the fully disposable WatchPat monitors.
“How the equipment works is there is only three points of contact like a smartwatch. There is also a finger probe and a small disc that sits on the chest. It can tell us more information than any of the home-sleep studies that have been done before. It tells us the stage of sleep and their breathing, which makes it more accurate. We’re still looking for obstructive sleep apnea,” explains Donecker.
Donecker says almost everyone can use the equipment at home as long as the insurance covers it and the patient has a smartphone to download the app. Once the data is uploaded to the doctor and someone is diagnosed with sleep apnea, they are typically prescribed a CPAP machine.
Donecker explains that when it comes to sleep, most people do not take it seriously when the reality is, sleep affects everything in your body and mind.
“Sleep is 100% important because the quality of our life equals the quality of our sleep. If we aren’t getting the needed amount of sleep or good quality of sleep, it increases many risk factors. We can be at risk for cognitive impairment, high blood pressure, strokes, heart attack, and also suffer from weight management issues.”
Donecker says people can diet and exercise, but if there isn’t good sleep quality to secrete hormones and blood sugars, it’s impossible to lose weight.
To find out more information about sleep disorders and how to be tested, contact the Sleep Disorder Clinic at 620-285-3161. Patients can be seen in Larned or at Great Bend.