Sleep Studies: Results
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Results
Sleep studies are tests that watch what happens to your body during sleep to find out what is causing your sleep problems. A polysomnogram (PSG) study checks your brain activity, eye movement, oxygen blood level, heart rate and rhythm, breathing rate and rhythm, the flow of air through your mouth and nose, the amount of snoring, body muscle movements, and chest and belly movements.
Sleep study results are generally available within 1 to 2 weeks. A family medicine doctor, an internist, a pulmonologist, or a neurologist can review your results at a follow-up visit. The sleep lab technician will not be able to review the results of the study with you.
Normal
| Brain activity (electroencephalogram, or EEG): | Sleep time, stages of sleep (NREM and REM), and awake time are normal. No abnormal brain activity (such as a seizure) is noted. |
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| Eye movement (electrooculogram, or EOG): | Slow eye movements are present at the start of sleep and change to rapid eye movements during REM sleep. |
| Muscle movement (electromyogram, or EMG): | No leg jerking or other abnormal muscle movement is present. |
| Blood oxygen (O2) level: | Blood O2 level is greater than 90%. |
| Heart rate and rhythm (EKG, ECG): | Heart rate and rhythm are normal. No heart rate changes (arrhythmias)—such as an abnormally slow or fast heart rate—are noted. |
| Breathing effort (respiratory disturbance index, or RDI): | Reduced air flow (hypopnea) or no air flow (apnea) to the lungs occurs fewer than 5 times in 1 hour. |
| Chest and belly movements: | The chest and belly move normally throughout the study. |
| Audio and video recordings: | Sleep is restful and not disturbed. Night terrors, sleepwalking, and sleep talking do not occur. |
| Snoring monitor: | Excessive snoring or abnormal snoring patterns are not present. |
| Airflow monitors: | Airflow through the mouth and nose is not blocked. |
| Sleep onset: | Taking 10 to 20 minutes to fall asleep is normal. |
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| Sleep onset: | Being awake for about 25 minutes is normal. |
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Abnormal values
- For a polysomnogram, reduced or blocked air flow to the lungs (RDI value) 5 to 10 times in 1 hour may mean you have sleep apnea.
- For a multiple sleep latency test (MSLT), taking an average of 5 to 10 minutes to fall asleep means you have mild to moderate daytime sleepiness. An average of less than 5 minutes to fall asleep means you have severe daytime sleepiness. An average of less than 5 minutes to fall sleep and 2 or more rapid eye movements (REM) during 5 to 6 naps means you may have narcolepsy.
- For a multiple wake test (MWT), falling asleep in less than 25 minutes is considered abnormal. This means you have severe daytime sleepiness. People who have narcolepsy also may have abnormal test results.
| Last updated: | July 13, 2007 |
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| Author: | Maria G. Essig, MS, ELS |
| Reviewed By: | Caroline S. Rhoads, MD - Internal Medicine, Jan Ulfberg, MD, PhD - Sleep Disorders |
| Editors: | Susan Van Houten, RN, BSN, MBA, Pat Truman, MATC |
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