Sleep Disorders Center
Roughly 70 million Americans suffer from sleep disorders. Sleep is essential for physical and mental renewal, and long-term sleep difficulties can lead to serious medical problems. Sleep medicine doctors, sleep technologists and other clinicians at South Baldwin Regional Medical Center are dedicated to helping you get a good night’s sleep.
There are approximately 85 possible sleep disorders including sleep apnea, narcolepsy and restless legs syndrome. Sleep disorders must be diagnosed through an interpreted sleep study. A sleep study, or polysomnogram, records activities such as brain waves, muscle movements, eye movements, mouth and nose breathing, snoring, heart rate and leg movements. At the Sleep Center at South Baldwin Regional Medical Center, this monitoring takes place in comfortable, home-like rooms.
Untreated sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea, can increase the risk for high blood pressure, heart attack and stroke. In addition, daytime drowsiness caused by sleep disorders may contribute to work-related injuries or driving accidents, putting you and others at risk for serious injury or death.
Common sleep disorders include:
- Sleep apnea – when a person stops breathing and then starts again many times a night
- Narcolepsy – when a person falls asleep suddenly many times a day
- Chronic insomnia – when a person has trouble falling asleep or staying asleep night after night
- Restless legs syndrome (RLS) – when a person loses sleep because of a restless feeling in the legs
While many are not aware that they have a sleep disorder until a loved one notices a problem, symptoms may include:
- Fatigue, lack of motivation and excessive daytime sleepiness
- Anxiety, depression and irritability
- Loud snoring or gasping for air while sleeping
- Pauses in breathing or racing heartbeat during the night
- Restless sleep
- Morning headaches
- Difficulty concentrating or learning
- Waking up frequently
- Nighttime sweating
If you have been experiencing a sleep problem for more than a month, your primary care physician can refer you for a sleep study at South Baldwin Regional Medical Center Sleep Disorders Center.
For more information, please call: (251) 949-3957