By Roger McKenzie
Courtesy the Alva Review Courier
Share Medical Center has expanded the services it offers area residents by recently establishing a Center for Sleep Medicine. The center is designed to test patients for sleep abnormalities and help provide solutions to restore normal sleep patterns.
The center was launched in late June of 2009. It has seen over 40 patients in that short time, more than originally projected according to Synova Sleep Services Founder, David McQuaig, whom SMC contracts with to provide the services.
“We have had an overwhelming response to the sleep center from the community,” McQuaig said. “The local physicians are screening patients and sending them to us for tests. We have also been getting referrals from Enid and Kansas physicians which we did not expect so soon.”
People who have trouble falling asleep, have difficulty staying asleep, who snore loudly, and who sleep but still feel tired and/or sleepy during the day are possible candidates for the sleep center. Patients should talk to their doctor first and will need a referral to set up an appointment.
Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea, which is often accompanied by snoring and daytime sleepiness, is the number one sleep disorder that the center sees in patients. A person with this disorder actually stops breathing many times during a night of sleep (see box).
It is a potentially life threatening disorder when left untreated.
The center can diagnose sleep apnea and other disorders by monitoring a patient’s sleep patterns. It does this by having a patient come to the center and spend a night, while hooked up to numerous wire leads that record vital information which is then interpreted by the center’s experts.Trained Staff
The Center has a staff of six. In addition to McQuaig, whose job is to review, score, and coordinate treatment plans, Brad Alstrin is the center’s sleep technician. He is a polysomnographic technician who brings the patient to one of the center’s two bedrooms, which are furnished more like a bedroom than a hospital room. He hooks the patient up to wire leads which provide the sleep data. It is a process that can take as long as 20-25 minutes. He then monitors the patient through the night, recording data from each of the leads, as well as video from a camera that records the patient’s movements during sleep.
SMC’s Cardiopulmonary Director, Clint Pfleider, the interpreting physicians, and a receptionist complete the center’s staff.
Advanced Diagnostic Technology
The equipment the center uses is the most advanced diagnostic equipment available in Oklahoma. Share Medical Center is one of only a handful of sleep labs in Oklahoma who have an Adaptive Servo-ventilator, which is used to treat central and complex apneas.
“We have the best equipment and the best staff, and our studies cost less than half of the state average,” McQuaig pointed out.
McQuaig has eight years of experience in diagnosing and treating sleep disorders. He began his career as a paramedic working in the military. When he opted out of the military life he jumped into sleep medicine working as a Registered Polysomnographic Technologist. Since that time he has managed and opened up numerous labs working for Sleep MD, a national sleep service provider.
In 2009, McQuaig went into business for himself and opened up Synova Sleep Service’s out of Broken Arrow. SMC is the first sleep center opened under Synova, with a center in Neodosha, Kan., opening up sometime in September.
Alstrin also began his career in the military as a combat medic. He has been working as a Certified Polysomnographic Technician for four years.
In the case of sleep apnea, after the sleep monitoring is performed by Alstrin, he and McQuaig go over the data and score it so the hospital’s physicians can interpret it and solve the patient’s particular problem.
Treatment
In most cases, one of several varieties of C-PAP machines is prescribed. C-PAP is short for Continuous Positive Airway Pressure; which the machine supplies to correct the disruptions in breathing. This machine comes with a long tube and mask. The machine forces the patient to breathe air under controlled pressure through the mask. A prescription is needed for this machine, which goes home with the patient and must be used consistently when the patient sleeps.
All of this takes some getting used to. While it may look and feel odd at first, it has a very serious purpose—to cure the disruptive sleep problems of the patient.
If the patient can tolerate the machine, the result is better, healthier sleep, an end to snoring, and significant reduction of tiredness. Since sleep apnea and other disorders can impose strain on the body and be potentially life-threatening, the result of corrective action can also lengthen a person’s life.
Occasionally, the patient is unable to tolerate CPAP. The mask can induce a form of claustrophobia or the patient just cannot get used to the pressure. In such cases, the sleep center can help coordinate care between the patient’s primary care physician and a specialist that may be able to correct he obstruction either surgically or fit an oral appliance.
According to Pfleider, the center can see up to four patients a week—on Monday and Tuesday nights. If you would like to make an appointment for a sleep study, first talk to your physician to be evaluated. The Center for Sleep Medicine will coordinate the care from that point.
If you have any questions or comments about the SMC’s Center for Sleep Medicine do not hesitate to contact Clint Pfleider at 580 430 3387. He will be glad talk with you about the overall sleep study process. |
|