New Instrument to Assess Patients Suspected of Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

In the February 1999 edition of SLEEP our faculty Dr. A. A. El-Solh of ECMC, Drs. E. Ten Brock and D. Shucard of BGH and Drs. M.J. Mador and B.J.B. Grant of Buffalo VAMC published an article on the use of artifical intelligence for assessing patients suspected of having obstructive sleep apnea. The patient completes a questionnaire of twelve items from which an estimate can be made of the apnea-hypopnea index. This index is a measure of the severity of obstructive sleep apnea. Scores less than 5 /hour are normal, scores greater than 20/hour are abnormal. The system is 95% accurate. You can check yourself at:
http://bgrant.med.buffalo.edu/sleep/.
If your score is high, check wit h your doctor. You will need an overnight sleep study to confirm the diagnosis before you can be treated for this condition. Sleep studies by university faculty are performed at the following locations:

Northwoods Sleep Apnea and Diagnosis and Treatment Center, (Drs. Aquilina and Magalang) 3950 East Robinson Road, Amherst, NY 14228, Telephone (716)691-6283

Sleep Disorders Center of WNY, Millard Fillmore Hospital (Drs. Rifkin, Shucard and Ten Brock) Gates Circle, Buffalo, NY 14209, Telephone (716)88-SLEEP

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The medical content provided at this Web site is not intended to replace appropriate medical consultation with a physician and/or dentist who has received training in sleep medicine. The information provided is simply to help you understand the various aspects of snoring and obstructive sleep apnea and appropriate treatment that may be prescribed your physician or dentist. We adhere to the suggested guidelines established by the American Medical Association (Assessing, Controlling, and Assuring the Quality of Medical Information on the Internet, Editorial, April 16, 1997. JAMA. 1997; 277: 1244-1245) for ensuring the quality of medical sites on the Internet. No guarantee is being made as to their qualifications to practice oral appliance therapy. The user is advised to check on credentials at the time of visit. In other words, everything possible is being done to ensure the reliability of the information at this site. However, we cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information here and users are strongly urged to consult with their own physicians.