Reviews of home sleep tests offered online?

[dh37]

I was diagnosed recently with OSA ("severe"), based on a home test. As I wrote in other threads, I'm having a hard time contacting the doctor and so forth. I'm also uncertain whether I really trust the diagnosis. And I can't see details about the test (not yet anyway), because I can't get in touch with the doctor.

Between now and perhaps finding another doctor (or the DME magically showing up at my door with an awesome, non-brick CPAP), I was thinking maybe it wouldn't hurt to repeat the test "the easy way," using a test vended online. I see a few places on the web: you order it, they send you the machine, you do a test, send it back.

Does anyone know of such an online service that has a good reputation?

What would be really awesome would be if I could "cheat" and actually suck the data out myself before shipping it back.

[kteague]

I think getting another test before seeing and evaluating the results of the original test is getting the cart before the horse. Having a doctor who is hard to contact and having non trustworthy results are two different things. I understand your frustration. I just think your energy and limited time would be better applied to getting the existing results. On contacting the doctor, I suggest you try a different number or at least leave your message through a different prompt - or a variety of prompts. One time I was all worked up about the many messages I'd left with no response. When I finally did some searching and tried a different number, I found the one I was calling was not even used by them any more. My messages were in the dead letter box. Sometimes calling the appointment line gets better results. They all want new business. Or the billing line, they want your money. After my first sleep study the doctor came in that morning before discharge and it was pretty clear this was his only role - diagnosis. Never saw or talked with him again. When you do get to talk with someone, keep in mind you are only asking them about the procedure, not for permission, to get both the report and prescription. If you waver, they may take advantage of that. If you want to give a reason or excuse regarding the prescription and avoid a debate or the runaround, use this being vacation season to your advantage. You want to be able to get anything you might need in case of an emergency while traveling. Good luck with things.

[Mogy]

Hi dh37,
When you say you don't trust the diagnosis do you mean you don't think you have OSA? Are you not interested in being treated?
In Alberta Canada(where I live) it is very common to be diagnosed with a home sleep test. There are studies that compare the HST to an in lab study. The HST is quite accurate.
I have used the Resmed Apnealink Air on 3 separate occasions. The last 2 times I got it for the weekend so I could 'suck' the data from it. The application that can read the data is available online. The problem is that is if you use the data it is removed from the tester. There is no data for the doctor to analyze. If you get it for a couple of nights you can take one nights data and leave the second night to be analyzed.
I feel the Apnealink Air gave a pretty accurate evaluation of my OSA, even though I did not think I had OSA when I took the first test about 16 months ago.

[dh37]

I think getting another test before seeing and evaluating the results of the original test is getting the cart before the horse. Having a doctor who is hard to contact and having non trustworthy results are two different things. I understand your frustration. I just think your energy and limited time would be better applied to getting the existing results.

Fair enough. I'll scratch that idea for now.

On contacting the doctor, I suggest you try a different number or at least leave your message through a different prompt - or a variety of prompts.

That's the thing. There are exactly two numbers: the sleep center number and the doctor's number. I looked online; he has no other office or practice. The sleep center itself is fronted by just one door and one small office; I doubt it's very large. It's part of a larger hospital system, but I don't see any other way "in".

There's only one non-tech staff person there. I suppose I can try that line again and ask for the results or a better way to get in touch.

When you do get to talk with someone, keep in mind you are only asking them about the procedure, not for permission, to get both the report and prescription. If you waver, they may take advantage of that. If you want to give a reason or excuse regarding the prescription and avoid a debate or the runaround, use this being vacation season to your advantage. You want to be able to get anything you might need in case of an emergency while traveling. Good luck with things.

OK, good advice.

[dh37]

Hi dh37,
When you say you don't trust the diagnosis do you mean you don't think you have OSA? Are you not interested in being treated?

Simply that I don't trust doctors. All I have is the word of a non-technical office person that the MD said I have severe OSA. It's certainly possible. I'm missing a lot of risk factors (no BP problems, not at all overweight, very few headaches), but I do snore really loudly (at least on my back), and I've "simulated" what my airway does by relaxing as if I were sleeping. (While that doesn't lead to obstruction, I can feel my airway narrow, and I while I look somewhat athletic/muscular, my muscle tone in general is pretty poor, so I wouldn't be surprised if my airway were relatively "floppy".) And I never feel like sleep is fully restorative, and it's getting worse with age (I'm early 50s). (Not to mention occasionally I have bad night sweats, though that might be due to taking an SSRI.)

In Alberta Canada(where I live) it is very common to be diagnosed with a home sleep test. There are studies that compare the HST to an in lab study. The HST is quite accurate.

While I'd rather have an in-lab full polysomnography study, I'd definitely trust a home HST. (At least, I believe/agree that the false positive rate is probably pretty small, and mine was positive.) I don't trust the doctor, not without me asking "what did you see in the data?" Of course, it's harder to believe the result isn't valid if it's "severe," since there's less room for monkeying around than for mild/moderate.

I have used the Resmed Apnealink Air on 3 separate occasions. The last 2 times I got it for the weekend so I could 'suck' the data from it. The application that can read the data is available online. The problem is that is if you use the data it is removed from the tester. There is no data for the doctor to analyze. If you get it for a couple of nights you can take one nights data and leave the second night to be analyzed.
I feel the Apnealink Air gave a pretty accurate evaluation of my OSA, even though I did not think I had OSA when I took the first test about 16 months ago.

OK, thanks for the info.

[ChicagoGranny]

I have bad night sweats

That is a symptom of clusters of long apneas. This is driving your blood pressure up. Your body is getting rid of water by sweating in an attempt to bring blood pressure down.

[chunkyfrog]

Get treated. You will be all right.
Try to lose the denial. It will only harm you.

[dh37]

Get treated. You will be all right.
Try to lose the denial. It will only harm you.

No denial here!

My dad lent me a CPAP machine a couple years ago for a night, when I was visiting him. I didn't really think I had OSA, but I thought, what the hell. It didn't do much good, but now that I've read up more, I can see that not "fitting" the machine or tweaking it, combined with only one nights' use, won't tell you anything.

It did tell me that I could wear a mask and adhere to the protocol, which is encouraging. If the choice is feeling rested and keeping my mild ADHD in check, and doing CPAP, versus feeling like crapola, being scatterbrained at work, and having increased emotional lability, I'll take the former, thank you.

[chunkyfrog]

Good to hear.
Denial is likely the most common obstacle to treatnent-- and damn near impossible to correct.

[ChicagoGranny]

I can see that not "fitting" the machine or tweaking it, combined with only one nights' use, won't tell you anything.

You now know more than my dad-blasted sleep docs.

[OkyDoky]

You stated that the sleep center was part of a larger hospital center. Call the medical records department of that hospital and request the records. That's how I got my sleep study. I did get the prescription from the doctor but this way you might at least get the sleep study report quicker.