Home sleep study vs sleep lab

[gsbuck]

I hate to be dumb, but what is PSG?

[Stevoreno_55]

I hate to be dumb, but what is PSG?

This might help from the trusted authority on everything on the Internet; WIKIPEDIA.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polysomnography



Stevoreno_55
MS Gulf Coast
04/21/14

[Pugsy]

PSG PolySomnoGram

http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/gu ... ysomnogram

fancy name for sleep study usually in reference to an in lab study with live tech in attendance to monitor all the available data channels.

There are of course the home PSG studies which are limited in the data channels that can be picked up and recorded.
Normally home studies don't have the extremity sensors to check for limb movement. Some don't even have sensors to try to pick up brain EEG activity which is needed to determine if someone actually was sleeping.

[The Latinist]

My insurance company wouldn't do a full sleep study just on my PCP's say-so. They wanted me to do a home study instead. So I made an appointment with the pulmonologist to see if he could justify the study. About two minutes into taking my medical history, he tossed his pen on the desk and said "I think we're done here." (He did finish the history and do an exam, of course; he just has a flair for the dramatic).

I've had two sleep studies: one in 2000 done in a hospital on a very uncomfortable gurney in a tiny room with a huge two-way mirror. And they kicked me out at 2 a.m..

My latest was done in a room with private bath, a TV, and a recliner. It wasn't five-star quality, but as comfortable as a few budget hotels I've stayed at. I had no caffeine the day of the test, so by the time they ha me wired up I was ready to collapse (I actually fell asleep during the calibration test), but I can see that if I had not been dead tired the amenities would have been helpful. Oh, and the TV remote was not in the room but the very nice tech offered to bring it if I wanted to watch TV. And, heck, if I'd wanted it turned off or on in the night, all I'd've had to do was clap twice and he'd've been there.

My only (minor) complaint was that there was no drinking water in the room, so I had to ask the tech to bring some.

[sleepy1235]

I think one advantage of the home sleep study is that you are measuring your sleep behavior in the environment where you actually sleep.

Clearly there is some information collected during a lab sleep study, but for the great majority I don't think that data is that relevant in my opinion.

I did read a study in an academic journal on respiratory research and the doctor did strongly advocate in lab sleep studies, but I didn't find his arguments at all convincing. I would have liked to see some data, rather than assertion.

There is a lot more revenue in sleep studies in a lab than at home.

[ironhands]

I think one advantage of the home sleep study is that you are measuring your sleep behavior in the environment where you actually sleep.

Clearly there is some information collected during a lab sleep study, but for the great majority I don't think that data is that relevant in my opinion.

I did read a study in an academic journal on respiratory research and the doctor did strongly advocate in lab sleep studies, but I didn't find his arguments at all convincing. I would have liked to see some data, rather than assertion.

There is a lot more revenue in sleep studies in a lab than at home.

It is true that sleep behavior in the home environment is important, but I disagree that the majority of the data it irrelevant in a lab study.

The majority of home studies only check your O2 saturation and heart rate - which is important in apnea, obviously, but it can't distinguish between the type of apnea, whether it's a central, obstructive, a hypopnea, nor can it determine which phase of sleep it happens in and how much time is spent in each phase. It seems as of late many physicians (and insurers) only see OSA when there's a sleep issue, but that is certainly not the case. Look at how many on this forum are dealing with either complex apnea, or have other co-morbid conditions. Sadly, medicine is budgeted, and that's what it boils down to. Many insurers just don't want to foot the bill for a comprehensive study. I will agree that it isn't always necessary, but those times it is, treatment can begin. It's like a cancer screening. We want it to be negative, and most of the time it is, but we do it anyway on the off chance it'll turn up positive and can begin early treatment. Sleep medicine isn't treated the same way, despite the neurological damage that can build up over the years from non-apnea sleep disorders that go untreated.