No Difference In Sleep Of OSA Patients Studied In A Hospital Vs. A Hotel-based Sleep Center

Kimberly N. Hutchison, MD, of Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tenn., reviewed polysomnograms, or sleep tests, completed in their hotel-based and hospital-based sleep laboratories over a two-year period. All patients were undergoing evaluation for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Dr. Hutchison and her colleagues compared the sleep architecture changes associated with the first-night effect in the two groups.

According to the results, no significant differences were detected between the two groups in sleep onset latency, sleep efficiency, REM sleep latency, total amount of slow wave sleep, and total stage 1 sleep. There was also no difference detected in arousal index between the two groups.

"Hotel-based sleep laboratories are growing. It is not known how this new environment will affect clinical studies," said Dr. Hutchison. "This study is meaningful because it suggests that the increased comfort and familiarity offered by a hotel setting doesn't necessarily change the sleep architecture, at least in our patient subgroup (patients referred for suspected sleep apnea). Perhaps our patients are more familiar with a hospital rather than a hotel!"

OSA is a sleep-related breathing disorder that causes your body to stop breathing during sleep. OSA occurs when the tissue in the back of the throat collapses and blocks the airway. This keeps air from getting into the lungs. It is estimated that four percent of men and two percent of women have OSA, and millions more remain undiagnosed.

The article entitled, "Analysis of Sleep Parameters in Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea Studied in a Hospital vs. a Hotel-Based Sleep Center", was published in the April 15 issue of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.