South Suburban Hospital Sleep Disorder Clinic Opens in Tinley

Have trouble sleeping?

Advocate South Suburban Hospital may have the answer at its new Sleep Disorders Clinic that moved into bigger and better facilities earlier this month at 16532 S. Oak Park Ave. in .

The state-of-the-art center has four beds and replaces an aging two-bed clinic at the hospital and a facility near Interstate 80 and LaGrange Road in Mokena.

“The new center has quite a lot of upgrades,” said Jim Munz, Director of Medical Staff Development for South Suburban Hospital. “We have more rooms and more beds.”

“The new location makes sense for our patients, who might not have wanted to go to Hazel Crest or Mokena,” said Munz. “It’s centrally located.”

The center monitors patients who have doctor-ordered tests to determine if they suffer from a sleep disorder such as sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome or narcolepsy. Their breathing, brain waves and muscle activity are monitored and the patients are videotaped while they sleep.

“Because the center is on the lower level, we have no windows, which cuts down light and noise,” said Munz. “The rooms are like staying at a 5-Star hotel, which creates less anxiety for the patient. There are bathrooms with showers and the patients get a continental breakfast in the morning.”

Dr. Raj Gupta, center medical director, said an estimated 50 million to 70 million Americans suffer from sleep disorders, and the number is increasing.

“Most go undiagnosed,” he said. “Sleep disorders can have serious health consequences including high blood pressure, heart failure, diabetes, attention deficit disorder and chronic fatigue syndrome.”

“Sleep disorders can affect how a person functions at work,” said Gupta, who has been at South Suburban Hospital for 30 years. “They can also make a person an unsafe driver.”

Gupta, who is board certified in pulmonary care and internal medicine, analyzes the results of the tests and determines a course of action with the patient’s primary care physician.

“The most common sleep disorder is sleep apnea, when the patient stops breathing for at least 10 seconds while sleeping,” said Gupta. “In serious cases, a person will wake up choking because he has stopped breathing and his body is telling him to wake up.”

The center is open daily and can accommodate all patients including shift workers who might normally sleep during the day.

“We can handle any situation,” said Munz.

The center accepts all patients with a doctor-ordered test, he said.

For information on the Advocate South Suburban Hospital Sleep Disorders Clinic, visit its website or call 800-3-ADVOCATE.

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