Centegra Health System provides support for sleep apnea sufferers

Submitted by Centegra Health System

Centegra Health System is providing a support group for people with sleep apnea, their family members and their friends. The group is part of the American Sleep Apnea Association’s AWAKE network. AWAKE stands for Alert, Well and Keeping Energetic.

The support group provides education and idea sharing for people who are affected by sleep-disordered breathing. The group meets on a quarterly basis at Centegra Hospital-Woodstock in the Heart Center conference rooms.

The next session, a question-and-answer session with Dr. Firas Dairi, will take place from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 5. Dairi is a medical director of Pulmonary and Sleep Services at Centegra Health System. Registration for the session is required; call (877) CENTEGRA to register.

For Americans of all ages, a good night’s sleep is elusive. However, sleep disorders can be diagnosed, and physicians can provide treatment to help. Sleep problems may be caused by disorders in various systems of the body. Sleep apnea, for example, can be an airway, neurological or combined disorder while narcolepsy is a neurological disorder.

Centegra’s Sleep Services Department helps physicians diagnose and treat sleep disorders. The Centegra Sleep Services staff works directly with board-certified physicians to provide patients with care. During a sleep study, a technologist records an assortment of measurements while a patient sleeps. The patient is painlessly connected to various monitors that record breathing, heart rate, muscle movement and other key factors. Sleep services available at Centegra range from age 5 and older. For parents of sleep services patients, there is a parent “room” available to stay in overnight during testing. Centegra also provides services for treatment and follow-up, including medical equipment for rent or purchase.

Those who think they may have a sleep disorder are encouraged to talk to their physician and ask for a referral to the Centegra Sleep Services Department. Sleep services are located at Route 14 and Doty Road, Woodstock, and 1122 N. Main St., Algonquin. For more information, call (877) CENTEGRA or visit centegra.org/sleep.