The Sleep Disorder Center

The Sleep Disorder Center at Memorial Hermann Northeast Hospital serves adult and pediatric patients, 5 years and older.

While the studies are conducted in a private, quiet and comfortable environment, emergency care is right next door, if needed.

The Center consists of two bedrooms with showers, featuring all the comforts of your own bedroom at home – plus a little extra.  The room also has state-of-the-art equipment operated by Sleep Center technicians.  Results are evaluated by board-certified pulmonologists and neurologists who can diagnose and treat sleep-related disorders.

Memorial Hermann Northeast’s Sleep Disorder Center "sleep techs,” who are all registered polysomnography technologists, observe patients overnight using an advanced computerized monitoring system to track breathing patterns, brainwaves, heart rate, eye and limb movements and the sounds of the sleeping patient.  The physicians can then determine the best approach and develop a personal treatment plan.

Types of sleep studies include:

• Polysomnograms (first-night sleep studies)
• Polysomnograms with CPAP Titration (second-night sleep studies)
• Split-night polysomnograms (combining the two sleep studies into one night)
• Multiple sleep-latency tests (MSLT) to diagnose narcolepsy
• Multiple wake test (MWT) to confirm that a sleep/breathing disorder treatment (CPAP/BiPAP) is effective.

We now have a board-certified sleep physician who can read pediatric sleep studies.

• The Sleep Lab can perform studies on children from 5 years old through the teenage years
• When children do not get the sleep they need, they are at risk for health, performance and safety problems, and difficulties in school.
• Sleep-deprived children become irritable.  They have trouble concentrating and therefore become less efficient at school and may suffer from behavioral problems.  Lack of sleep also can contribute to childhood obesity.
• Symptoms of sleep deprivation in children include:

  Nighttime
  

  • Snoring
  • Breathing pauses during sleep
  • Restless sleep
  • Mouth breathing
  • Difficulty getting up in the morning

  Daytime
  

  • Hyperactivity
  • Inattention
  • Behavior problems
  • Sleepiness

• Sleep is just as important to long-term health as exercise and good nutrition.
• Sleep disorders affect up to 40 million people, with obstructive sleep apnea affecting up to 18 million people
• More than 2 million children suffer from sleep disorders and research estimates that 30-40 percent of children do not get enough sleep
• According to the National Institutes of Health, children who have problem sleeping tend to score lower on tests of mental development and intelligence and have more behavioral problems.
• More than 63 percent of American adults do not get the recommended eight hours of sleep needed for good health and safety
• Sleep apnea is linked to increased blood pressure, stroke and heart attack
• The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that about 100,000 police-reported crashes are caused by drowsy drivers and these crashes result in more than 1,500 fatalities and 71,000 injuries each year with an estimated $12.5 billion in diminished productivity and property loss
• Sleepiness causes:
  
  • Impaired reaction time, judgment and vision
  • Problems with information processing, short-term memory, decreased performance, vigilance, motivation
  • Increased moodiness and aggressive behavior

• Obese individuals have a higher chance of having obstructive sleep apnea
• The Sleep Lab has accommodations to meet the needs of morbidly obese patients with a Bariatric sleeper/recliner.  It is a specially made recliner that can accommodate up to 700 pounds.

Contact

For more information about the Sleep Disorder Center at Memorial Hermann Northeast Hospital, call 281.540.6461.