I am curious if anyone knows when general practioners began to correctly diagnosis the symptons of sleep apnea and refer the patients to specialists for sleep studies/analysis. I reported the symptoms to a military doctor in 1971, i.e., heavy snoring and interruption of breathing during sleep, and was told repeatedly that I could not stop breathing because if I did I would die and what my wife was detecting was a cessation in my snoring and she was mistaking that for interruption of my breathing.  I am currently applying to VA for service connected disability for sleep apnea but my military service record only documents problems sleeping which the doctor incorrectly documented as insomnia.  Can anyone provide a time frame when sleep apnea began to be routinely diagnosed by Family Practice Doctors? Any information will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

I know that it wasn't routine in the US in 1994.  I brought a tape of my snoring and stopping breathing to my GP and he didn't see a treatable condition.  I had to go directly to a sleep clinic at a hospital to find a sleep specialist.

This might be useful, note 1992 and later:

# 1971 - European Sleep Research Society (ESRS) is founded
# 1976 - The Association of Sleep Disorders Centers (ASDC) was founded
# 1978 - Association of Polysomnographic Technologists (APT) was founded by Peter McGregor
# 1978 - The Japanese Society for Sleep Research (JSSR) is founded
# 1982 - The Belgian Association for the Study of Sleep (BASS) is founded
# 1983 - The Association for the Psychophysiology Study of Sleep is renamed the Sleep Research Society (SRS)
# 1984 - The Clinical Sleep Society (CSS) is recognized as a branch of the ASDC
# 1985 - The Scandinavian Sleep Research Society (SSRS) is founded
# 1986 - The ASDC, CSS, APT, and SRS becomes the federated Association of Professional Sleep Societies (APSS)
# 1986 - The Latin American Sleep Society (LASS) is founded
# 1986 - The Sleep Society of Canada (SSC) is founded
# 1987 - The ASDC changes its name to American Sleep Disorders Association
# 1989 - The British Sleep Society (BSS) is founded
# 1990 - The National Sleep Foundation is created
# 1992 - The United States Congress appoints the National Commission on Sleep Disorders Research to determine the extent of sleep disorders on safety
# 1993 - Legislation is passed to create the National Center for Sleep Disorders Research in the U.S.
# 1996 - The American Medical Association recognized sleep medicine as a specialty

The first comprehensive textbook on basic sleep medicine was Principles and Practice of Sleep Disorders Medicine in 1989, edited by Meir Kryger, William Dement, and Thomas Roth.

Thanks for the information. This will be very helpful.

Just want to add that while it has had a formal diagnosis for awhile (thanks Bearded One, you've been putting in some great research) ignorant physicians in all disciplines misdiagnosis it all of the time, urgggg!!

Vicki


_________________
That which does not kill you makes you stronger-Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich must of had apnea.

The history of The American Sleep Apnea Association itself may provide some indication

Quote:

The ASAA was founded in 1990 as a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization by persons with apnea and concerned health care providers and researchers.

The ASAA A.W.A.K.E. Network plays a crucial role in the ASAA's educational and advocacy efforts. "A.W.A.K.E." is an acronym for "Alert, Well, And Keeping Energetic," characteristics that are uncommon in persons with untreated apnea. Founded in 1988 as a mutual-help support group for persons affected by sleep apnea

Another indication is that CPAP was not invented until 1981, prior to that the only treatments available for sleep apnea were surgical, such as tracheostomy.

Respironics introduced its first CPAP machine, the SleepEasy, in 1986.  The SleepEasy brand of CPAP is still being manufactured.

Dr Dement's book "The Promise of Sleep", has the following info about the discovery of OSA. Some of the info I copied verbatim from the book:

- OSA was the third sleep disorder disovered (1st narcolepsy, second restless legs syndrome)
- OSA identified in 1956 by a group of pulmonary doctors who found some extremely obese and sleepy patients. It was first called "Pickwickian Syndrome" after "Joe the fat boy", a character in Dickens book "Pickwick Papers". (Joe was an overweight sleepy boy who feel asleep standing up. Wonder where Dickens came up with that?). They initially thought that the OSA patients had high levels of carbon dioxide, but they only studied them during the day.
- In 1965 two research groups in Europe noticed the "Pickwickian" patients stopped breathing in their sleep. They published their findings in a medical journal (didn't say which one), but no one in the U.S. (or anywhere else) gave it much attention.
- In 1970 Dr Dement studied some Pickwickian patients at the VA hospital in Palo Alto. The studies there confirmed what the Europeans found. Initially everyone that was extremely sleepy was thought to have narcolepsy. Dr Dement attributed the condition intially to the obesity but changed his perspective when he met Christian Guilleminault in 1972. (the book is written by Dr Dement, so it is from his perspective, I'm not sure of Christian's exact role in all of this. He persuaded people at Stanford's sleep clinic to study the patients while sleeping because of their high rise in blood pressure.
- By Nov 1972 enough info was gathered on the condition to present it in the worlds first medical CME (continuing medical education) seminar on sleep disorders.
- the book goes on with a lot of other history on how they started figuring everything out with EEGs, EKGs, etc. while studying the patients when sleeping.

Another good source of info is "Phantom of the Night" by Dr Scott Johnson and Jerry Halberstadt. In this book they give the following info about development of CPAP:

- Dr Colin Sullivan (an Aussie) first used CPAP in 1981. The CPAP became commercially available in 1983. Dr Sullivan found his first apnea patient in 1970s. His first patient used a CPAP in 1980 and until that time, a tracheostomy was the only treatment option. This book is more technical than Dr Dement's book and focuses only on apnea. It has some really good info in it.

Invention of the CPAP for obstructive sleep apnea
 The original CPAP device was the result of studies on obstructive sleep apnea being done by Dr. Colin Sullivan in Australia during the 1970's and 1980's. He along with 2 colleagues Michael Berthon-Jones and Faiq Issa were doing experiments on occlusion in humans. Dr. Sullivan was working with a patient that was about to undergo a tracheotomy for his apnea and really did not relish the procedure. An experiment was set up to try keeping the patient's airway open using some available tubing and a pressure device that was available. The experiment worked and proved to Dr. Sullivan that blowing air into the patient would allow the patient to sleep throughout the night.
 From these early experiments, the first, crude CPAP devices were developed. At first, a mask was literally made and "glued" onto the patient. The first blowers tried were vacuum cleaners run in the reverse mode. From these humble beginnings, the modern CPAP devices of today were developed. New technologies and materials have helped make the CPAP the accepted method of treating sleep apnea.