Identifying Sleep Disorders

Sleep deprivation, caused by insufficient sleep or poor quality of sleep, impairs the body’s immune system, physical reflexes, emotional stability, and cognitive functions. It can also lead to increased muscle, joint and nerve pain. Sleep disorders can be caused by pain, or they can be a symptom of other serious illnesses such as clinical depression, heart disease or sleep apnea.

Before speaking with your physician, a first step that you can take at home to see if you might have a sleep disorder is to answer the Eight Questions of the Epworth Sleepiness Scale. If your score is equal to or higher than 10, please make sure to tell your doctor.

Your initial medical evaluation at the Kaplan Center for Integrative Medicine will include a comprehensive assessment of your sleep history. In developing your treatment plan, your Kaplan physician will consider all of your options, including the need for a comprehensive sleep study and specialized medication to help restore healthy sleep patterns.

WatchPAT® ONE for Diagnosing Sleep Apnea and Other Sleep Disorders

To help us detect sleep apnea as well as providing markers for quality of sleep, we prescribe our patients WatchPAT ONE a recyclable Home Sleep Apnea Test (HSAT) that utilizes Bluetooth technology to sync with your smartphone.  WatchPAT ONE can be a valuable tool to help us monitor if there is adequate amounts of Deep and REM sleep, apnea episodes, oxygen and heart rate, snoring, movement, and more. Read more..

Our physicians understand the relationship between sleep disorders and pain, and they have experience prescribing the newer medications that can help restore delta-wave sleep. They also have expertise using alternative approaches, such as mind/body relaxation techniques, acupuncture, herbal and homeopathic remedies and lifestyle changes including better nutrition and increased exercise that can improve both your sleep and your overall health.