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A new study confirms that the "STOP questionnaire"
is a useful tool for predicting your risk of obstructive sleep apnea. So what’s your risk?
To find out, answer these four simple, yes or no “STOP” questions:
S: Do you SNORE loudly (louder than talking or loud enough to be heard through closed doors)?
T: Do you often feel TIRED, fatigued, or sleepy during daytime?
O: Has anyone OBSERVED you stop breathing during your sleep?
P: Do you have or are you being treated for high blood PRESSURE?
You have a high risk of sleep apnea if you answered “yes” to two or more of these questions. You have a low risk if you answered “yes” to less than two questions.
The questionnaire has an even higher predictive value when you answer four more questions in the “STOP-Bang” version:
B: BMI more than 35 kg/m2?
A: Age over 50 yr old?
N: Neck circumference greater than 40 cm (15.75 in)?
G: Gender male?
You have a high risk of sleep apnea if you answered “yes” to three or more of the eight STOP-Bang questions. You have a low risk if you answered “yes” to less than three questions.
Why is this important? It is estimated that about 80 percent of men and 90 percent of women with moderate to severe sleep apnea are undiagnosed. You could be one of these people.
The STOP-Bang tool was designed for people who are about to undergo surgery. You may have increased complications during surgery if you have undiagnosed sleep apnea.
But it is a useful tool that anyone can use. Yet no screening tool is perfect. And the only way to confirm that you have sleep apnea is with a sleep study. Contact an AASM-accredited sleep center near you for help.
Learn more about your risk for sleep apnea on SleepEducation.com.
Sleep disorders can reduce both the quantity and quality of your sleep. Can they also affect your dreams?
A new review examined the current research. Only a small number of studies have focused on this subject. But results suggest that a couple of common sleep disorders may have an impact on your dreams.
People with insomnia are more likely to recall their dreams. The content of their dreams tends to reflect current stressors.
Breathing-related dreams are rare in people with sleep apnea.
People with narcolepsy tend to have bizarre dreams with a negative tone. This may be related to their disrupted sleep cycles.
The complex process of sleep involves multiple stages that make up a sleep cycle. Each complete cycle lasts about 90 to 110 minutes. Most adults will go through four to six cycles in a full night of sleep.
Most dreams occur during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. This tends to be the final stage of the sleep cycle in normal adult sleep.
But people who have narcolepsy tend to go quickly into REM sleep. These events are called sleep-onset REM periods (SOREMPs).
Overall, the studies in the review support the “continuity hypothesis” of dreaming. This states that dreams reflect the issues and concerns of your life.
Earlier this year the Sleep Education Blog reported on the recent resurgence of bed bugs. Now Rep. G.K. Butterfield of North Carolina is sponsoring federal legislation to fight back.
H.R. 2248 was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives on May 5. It is called the “Don't Let the Bed Bugs Bite Act of 2009.” The bill would “establish a grant program to assist States in inspecting hotel rooms for bed bugs.” It has been referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
The bill has eight cosponsors. Among them are Rep. Corrine Brown of Florida, Rep. Bobby Rush of Illinois and Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas.
The bill reports that the population of cimex lectularius – or bed bugs – has increased in the U.S. by 500 percent in the past few years. Lodging facilities are most vulnerable.
According to the bill, bed bugs can travel through the ventilation systems in multi-unit housing. And female bed bugs can lay up to five eggs in a day and 500 in a lifetime. The bill also cites a study of 700 hotel rooms between 2002 and 2006; 25 percent of hotels needed treatment for bed bugs.
The bill would authorize $50 million in annual grant money for fiscal years 2010 to 2013. States would be eligible for grants to inspect lodging facilities for bed bugs; to qualify a state would have to inspect at least 20 percent of rooms each year. “Lodging facilities” are defined as hotels, motels and inns that have at least 10 rooms for commercial lodging.
The bill also calls for the CDC to “investigate the public health implications of bed bugs on lodging and housing.” Specific concerns include how bed bugs may affect mental health, spread disease or contribute to problems such as asthma. The CDC would have to submit a report to Congress by Dec. 31, 2010.
According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, your brain has its own music soundtrack. And this “brain music” just might help you sleep better.
The DHS wants to help emergency responders sleep well when they end a stressful shift. So it is studying the use of “brain music.”
How is this music recorded? The Loudoun Times-Mirror in Virginia reports that you wear a skullcap that contains EEG sensors. For about five minutes these sensors record your brain waves.
Then a computer analyzes the data. It finds the rhythm of your brain waves and transforms the unique pattern into two musical compositions. One has a fast tempo to boost alertness; the other has a slow tempo to promote relaxation.
You listen to this music at scheduled times according to your needs. It is believed that this musical feedback triggers a natural response in your brain. The fast-paced music gives you a burst of productivity and energy; the relaxing music helps you recover from a stressful situation. You can listen to a brain music sample provided by the DHS.
Does it work? It is still being tested as part of the DHS Readiness Optimization Program. But the idea has intriguing possibilities.
There is some support for using music to sleep better. A small study in 2008 showed that music therapy may reduce insomnia symptoms in older adults. Music relaxation improved their sleep and reduced their anxiety.
Another study of young adults between 19 and 28 years of age found similar results. They listened to relaxing classical music for 45 minutes at bedtime. This improved their sleep quality and reduced depressive symptoms.
There also is strong evidence that supports the use of cognitive behavioral therapy to treat insomnia. CBT is effective and has long-lasting results. Treatment methods include relaxation training and biofeedback.
“Brain music” therapy combines some elements of both music therapy and CBT. Should it be included as one of the techniques used in CBT? The evidence is not in yet.
But a sleep specialist at an AASM-accredited sleep center can determine which insomnia treatment is best for you.
Obstructive sleep apnea involves pauses in breathing during sleep. These breathing pauses occur when the tongue and soft tissue of the throat collapse and block the airway.
What if you exercised the tongue and the throat muscles each day? Would strengthening and toning these muscles prevent your airway from collapsing?
This idea gained support from a small study in 2006. Sleep apnea severity improved in people who learned to play the didgeridoo.
A new study from Brazil used an exercise regimen to put this theory to the test. The small study involved people with moderate sleep apnea; 16 participants performed daily exercises for three months.
The British Medical Journal Group reports that the exercises were developed from speech therapy. One technique was to repeatedly press the tongue up against the roof of the mouth. Participants also practiced sucking in the cheeks. Another technique was to repeatedly blow up a balloon after breathing in through the nose.
Results show that sleep apnea symptoms improved after performing the exercises each day for three months. Snoring intensity and frequency decreased. Daytime sleepiness and sleep quality improved. Neck circumference even decreased by about 1 cm.
Sleep apnea severity also improved; the average number of breathing pauses dropped from 22.4 pauses per hour to 13.7 pauses per hour.
"These data suggest that the exercises were able to promote remodeling of the upper airways," study author Dr. Geraldo Lorenzi-Filho said in a prepared statement. “This indicates to us that these exercises have significant potential to improve symptoms in sufferers of OSA.”
It is important to note that the treatment was not tested on people with severe sleep apnea. And 14 of 16 participants still had mild or moderate sleep apnea at the end of the study.
Lorenzi-Filho noted that it is unclear if all of the exercises were essential. One of the techniques may have been more effective than the others.The most effective treatments for sleep apnea are CPAP and oral appliances. A sleep specialist at an AASM-accredited sleep center can determine which treatment option is best for you.
A new study confirms that the "STOP questionnaire" is a useful tool for predicting your risk of obstructive sleep apnea. So what’s your risk?
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