St. Peter opens new center to test for sleep disorders

Clinic most commonly checks patients for apnea

By Keri Brenner | The Olympian • Published June 09, 2008

The six bedrooms at the new Sleep Center of Southwest Washington look like any other hotel suite, except for the stack of electrode-like wires hanging on the wall.

"We like to simulate that homelike feeling," said Dennis Jensen, administrator of the clinic, which had its grand opening Thursday. "We recommend patients bring their own pillow and their favorite blanket."

The $1 million, 5,000-square-foot center in an outpatient complex at Providence St. Peter Hospital tests people for sleep disorders. The most common reason for testing is suspected sleep apnea, a disorder where a breathing problem wakes a person up many times a night — some as often as 300 times — for up to 10 seconds each time.

The patient usually doesn't remember waking up, although a spouse might complain of the partner's snoring, or might notice that the person stops breathing.

"You think you slept, but it's not restful sleep," Jensen said. "Many people don't know they have it, and they don't take it seriously."

Jensen and Dr. John Brottem, who founded St. Peter's original sleep center in 1986, say apnea is a serious health problem that is on the rise as the population becomes more obese. The disorder is leading to an increase in car accidents, because the main symptom of apnea is feeling sleepy and falling asleep involuntarily during the day.

In addition, apnea can cause stroke, high blood pressure and heart attack, as the heart and lungs become oxygen-deprived and have to work harder to pump blood.

Apnea results in a loss of rapid-eye-movement, or REM-stage sleep, the deepest level. The REM deficit can lead to serious daytime fatigue and mood changes, Brottem said. Without REM sleep, the brain cannot process all of the electrical signals it picked up during the day, Brottem said.

"The brain is like the Target warehouse in Lacey — all day long huge trucks are coming in," Brottem said. "At night, the trucks don't come anymore, but the forklifts are inside, moving things around."

The new sleep center, remodeled from a prior cardiology office, tests an average of four to six patients a night, seven nights a week. Up to 2,000 people are expected to be tested this year, Jensen said. The cost of the testing is around $4,200, which is covered by most health insurance plans.