|
|
Attention:
Please note, The Penn Sleep Center has chosen Supreme Comfort to
provide them with the necessary mattresses and adjustable beds needed
to conduct sleep disorder clinical research.
Clinical Program:
The Penn Sleep Center |
The Penn Sleep Center consists of both outpatient
practices and sleep laboratories at several locations within
the University of Pennsylvania Health System. The Penn Sleep
Center provides state-of–the-art diagnostic services and treatment
for the full spectrum of disorders encountered in Sleep Medicine.
Staff physicians have particular areas of interest and expertise,
including the management of sleep apnea, narcolepsy, parasomnias,
insomnia, circadian rhythm disorders, and nocturnal movement
disorders including restless legs syndrome.
|
Patients who are referred to a Penn Sleep Center physician
undergo a comprehensive evaluation. At the initial visit, complete
medical and sleep histories are obtained, and a medical examination
is performed. Many patients are then asked to return for overnight
sleep studies. After testing has been completed, patients return
to their sleep physician to review the results and develop a
treatment plan. Patients who do not require overnight studies
are also followed by a sleep physician so that their treatment
can be monitored. For patients who are interested in participating
in clinical research protocols, a number of opportunities are
available.
|
Services at the Penn Sleep Center are provided on an outpatient
basis. Although the Center is based at the Hospital of the University
of Pennsylvania, Penn Sleep Center physicians are also available
to evaluate patients at other University of Pennsylvania Health
System locations including Presbyterian Medical Center, Penn
Medicine at Radnor, and Pennsylvania Hospital. Affiliated physicians
are available in Doylestown and at Phoenixville Hospital.
|
For patient convenience, sleep laboratory diagnostic services
are provided at several sites as well. Currently there are hospital-based
Penn Sleep Centers at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania,
Presbyterian Hospital, and Phoenixville Hospital, and there
is a free-standing laboratory in Doylestown. There is also an
affiliated sleep laboratory at Pennsylvania Hospital. More than
three thousand sleep studies per year are performed within the
Penn system. All Penn Sleep Center facilities are fully accredited
by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.
|
Facilities for sleep studies are designed for patient comfort,
and insofar as possible, resemble home bedrooms, with telephones,
television, and ready access to bathrooms.
Sleep studies are performed by technologists who have undergone
a rigorous training program. These technologists remain available
to patients throughout the night. Patients are typically asked
to arrive for their study in the early evening, and are discharged
between 6 and 8 AM the following day. Depending upon the nature
of their sleep problem, some patients may be asked to remain
after their overnight study for a series of naps. During a sleep
study (also known as a polysomnogram), several aspects of sleep
are analyzed, including brain activity, heart activity, breathing
and body movements. All monitoring is non-invasive, and the
majority of patients are able to sleep as well in the laboratory
as they do at home.
|
|
