POLYSOMNOGRAPHY

Polysomnography

Polysomnography

Introduction

Polysomnography (PSG) is a diagnostic test for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a disorder characterized by repetitive episodes of apnea or reduced inspiratory airflow due to upper airway obstruction during sleep. During PSG, the patient sleeps while connected to a variety of monitoring devices that record physiologic variables. Patterns of physiologic abnormalities during sleep may be diagnostic of OSA and other disorders. PSG is considered the gold standard diagnostic test when it is performed overnight in a sleep laboratory with a technologist in attendance. (Meyer, 1993)

A number of physiological parameters are measured, including sleep stages (characterized using a combination of EEG, eye movements, and muscle tone), respiratory function (including air flow at the nose and mouth, respiratory movements of the chest and abdomen, and oximetry), electrocardiogram (EKG), limb movements, a microphone to detect sounds such as snoring or vocalizations, and video tape to characterize movements or behaviors during sleep. A standardized scoring manual provides guidelines and criteria for analysis of polysomnography in adults and children. Specific guidelines are also available for infants. Laboratory-based polysomnography performed with the presence of a sleep technologist is indicated for the following purposes:

Establishing the diagnosis of a sleep-related breathing disorder

Titration of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP)

Evaluation for narcolepsy

Evaluation of sleep-related behaviors that are violent or potentially injurious

Polysomnography also may be indicated for evaluation of:

Patients with neuromuscular disorders and sleep-related symptoms

A strong clinical suspicion of periodic limb movement disorder

Polysomnography is not routinely indicated for evaluation of difficulty initiating or maintaining sleep (insomnia), circadian rhythm disorders, uncomplicated parasomnias, chronic lung disease, depression, restless legs syndrome, or behaviorally based sleep problems. (Bonnet, 2007)

Discussion And Analysis

Polysomnography (PSG) typically consists of an all-night recording performed in the sleep laboratory in order to characterize sleep architecture and sleep pathology. The tests include hospital rooms monitored throughout the course of sleep. A very large number of sensors of various types is provided on the body, limbs and the head of the patient and allows continuous recording of values neurological, cardiorespiratory, positional, and others. This test has its greatest extreme indaginosità limit (the picture makes it clear that it can be complex to stay prepared for this exam), but this study is unavoidable in case of complex diseases that include, among others, also DRS. Roncopatie for the study of sleep at home is definitely more suitable. Allows you to get closer to the normal course of a sleep "normal" and still provides 8 to 11 different parameters, and contemporaries, recorded continuously. (Montserrat, 1997)

Normally during the test are recorded the airflow in the nose and mouth, the loudness of snoring, movements of thorax and abdomen, the patient position in bed, blood oxygen saturation, the data of a derivation ECG (electrocardiogram) and a channel electromyography. Beyond these specific circumstances, there are many other reasons that prevent sleep. In fact, according to some psychologists, a person who is happy with your partner sleep well on the other hand, who is unhappy not getting enough rest. The insomnia is a sleep disorder common and usual, for this ...