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Posted in Uncategorized | May 6, 2025
Do you often feel sleepy, exhausted, or irritable during the day? Does your bed partner complain about your loud snoring?
You may have sleep apnea, a disorder that can go undiagnosed and cause serious health complications. A home sleep study is a quick, hassle-free, and effective diagnostic tool that can diagnose apnea and ensure you get the appropriate treatment.
Keep reading to learn more about how you can get a home sleep study.
Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder where breathing stops and starts repeatedly. Each time your brain senses the breathing pauses, it wakes you up slightly so you can resume breathing.
Although you won’t recall the brief awakenings, they prevent deep restorative sleep. The breathing interruptions can last for more than 10 seconds and happen 5 to 30 times or more every hour throughout the night.
The main type of sleep apnea is called obstructive sleep apnea or OSA. With OSA, the muscles supporting your tongue, soft palate, tonsils, side walls of your throat, and uvula relax and collapse, narrowing or completely blocking your airway.
This prevents you from getting sufficient air. Once your brain realizes you’re not breathing, it wakes you up so you can reopen your airway and start breathing again.
The most common symptoms of sleep apnea are:
Often, it’s your bed partner who’ll notice apnea symptoms such as snoring, gasping or choking, and breathing pauses.
Left undiagnosed and untreated, sleep apnea can lead to the following complications:
A home sleep study is a painless test that diagnoses or rules out obstructive sleep apnea. Unlike an in-lab sleep test, a home sleep study test is done in the comfort of your home and bed.
The test uses a portable unit to measure your blood oxygen level, breathing patterns, airflow, and heart rate.
Your ENT specialist may recommend a home sleep study test if you are presenting with symptoms of sleep apnea. You may not be eligible for the test if:
The home sleep study process involves the following steps:
You need a prescription to get a home sleep study test. If your bed partner mentions that you frequently snore, gasp, or choke while sleeping or you’re experiencing symptoms of sleep apnea, it’s time to visit your ENT specialist at Specialty Care Institute.
After a thorough consultation and evaluation, they will determine if you qualify and may prescribe a home sleep study test.
The home sleep study device can be delivered to your home, or you can collect it at your ENT specialist’s office. You’ll receive detailed instructions on how to use it.
You might also be given a brief demonstration. Don’t hesitate to ask if there is anything you don’t understand.
Your ENT specialist may recommend the following when preparing to take a home sleep study test:
When you’re ready to sleep, you’ll place a pulse oximeter over your finger to measure your blood oxygen levels. You’ll likely insert nasal tubes into your nostrils and secure them around your ears to measure airflow.
Additionally, you may wear a chest belt to measure respiratory effort. Once done, you can turn on the device and sleep as usual.
You’ll remove the sensors and switch off the device when you wake up in the morning.
If it’s not a disposable test, you’ll send or return the home sleep study device as directed by your ENT specialist. They’ll then retrieve, analyze, and interpret the data collected.
You’ll discuss your test results with your ENT doctor during your follow-up visit. If they’re inconclusive or negative, but you have sleep apnea symptoms, your ENT specialist may order an in-lab sleep study, where the test is done in a hospital or clinical setting.
If the test is positive and you’re given a sleep apnea diagnosis, your ENT specialist will determine the best treatment plan to alleviate your symptoms and prevent complications.
At Specialty Care Institute, our ENT specialists are committed to providing thorough testing and individualized care to improve your sleep, health, and overall quality of life. They can determine the underlying cause of your symptoms and create an effective treatment plan to ensure you get the restful, refreshing sleep you deserve.
Do you have sleep apnea symptoms? Schedule your appointment at Specialty Care Institute in Barrington, Arlington Heights, Hoffman Estates, and Elgin, IL, today to find out if you need a home sleep study.
