Patients who have been referred by their physicians to obtain the services of a sleep clinic have myriads of choices. Credibility, competence, and comfort must be the primary concern of any patient who chooses to get help from a sleep clinic. At present, with over 900 accredited sleep clinics in the United States, there is bound to be one that will serve as your home away from home.

Many of today's sleep clinics hardly look like clinics at all. The rooms are decorated much in the same manner as your home bedroom would like. Some sleep clinics simulate a hotel or actually have an adjoining hotel which allows patients to relax before and after procedures. Some even boast of indoor and outdoor swimming pools, whirlpools and workout facilities. Some offer breakfast services to patients.

On top of these luxury services, whether hospital based, university based, or privately owned, a modern sleep clinic must be accredited. In the United States, accreditation is sought through the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

A sleep clinic must employ licensed and qualified physicians, therapists, and technicians. Many sleep clinics pride themselves in offering state-of-the-art care from experts in sleep medicine working together with specialists in various medical fields such as psychiatry and psychology, neurology, pulmonary medicine, otorhinolaryngology, orthodontics, and oral and maxillofacial surgery.

A competent sleep clinic could offer multi-specialty comprehensive programs dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of sleep disorders in both children and adults. Facilities must always include equipment in polysomnography (PSG), a multi-parametric test that keeps a comprehensive recording of the biophysiological changes that occur during sleep.

Over the recent years, aside from the basic polysomnography test, further tests that enable diagnosis of other sleep disorders have been employed by sleep clinics. Some of these are the multiple sleep latency test (MSLT), used to measure the severity of a patient's daytime sleepiness, and repeated test of sustained wakefulness (RTSW), a test that measures sleep latency or the speed with which the patient falls asleep.

Inhalation therapies are a group of respiratory, or breathing, treatments designed to help restore or improve breathing function in patients with sleep disorders such as sleep apnea. CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) equipment is one example of inhalation therapy utilized by sleep clinics for treating sleep apnea.

More sophisticated clinics now even offer surgery but only as a last-resort treatment, and if the patient's disorder is life threatening and cannot be treated by other methods. This may include procedures such as tracheostomy, which involves making an opening into the windpipe, and tonsillectomy, the removal of tonsils and adenoids. Both procedures have been known to remedy sleep apnea.

At present, latest equipment include fiber-optic technology which helps monitor patient's breathing, heart rate and brain wave activity, as well as other parameters to determine if a sleep disorder is present.

With so many alternatives available to the patient these days, there is definitely no reason to neglect one's sleeping problems. With the help of your doctor, keep in mind that treatment for your sleep disorder is handy. Take advantage of the choices offered to you. After all, sleep clinics were built to help you sleep soundly through the night.