CHARALAMPOS M. MERMIGKIS MD, PhD
Sleep Specialist, Pulmonologist
Sleep Medicine Fellowship, Cleveland Clinic Sleep Disorders Center, Ohio, USA
American Board of Sleep Medicine Certified International Sleep Specialist
Member of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine
Director of Sleep Disorders Center Henry Dunant Hospital Center
Tel. +30 6944 284814
E c.mermigkis@dunant.gr, mermigh@gmail.com | www.mermigkis.gr
Sleep Laboratory Henry Dunant Hospital Center
The Sleep Laboratory Department is active in all areas of modern Sleep Medicine. It provides the diagnosis and treatment of all sleep disorders. The organization and operation of the laboratory are based on internationally recognized criteria, while in the same time the lab has many years of experience in the field. The laboratory offers its services to all inpatients and outpatients of our hospital.
Staffing - Operation
1. Director of the Sleep Laboratory. He is a medical practitioner of pulmonology as well as a Sleep Specialist with years of experience in the field . His research activity resulted until now in many publications. The Director is responsible for the analysis, the processing and the diagnosis of all sleep studies carried out in the hospital’s laboratory, as well as for the clinical assessment of patients.
2. Technicians of the Sleep Laboratory. The lab is staffed with specialized sleep technicians who are responsible for the continuous overnight monitoring of patients undergoing a sleep study.
Activities
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Diagnosis and treatment of all sleep disorders, such as:
1. Sleep apnea syndrome
2. Various forms of insomnia
3. Parasomnias (sleepwalking, night terrors, confusional arousals, REM sleep behavior disorder, nightmare disorder)
4. Hypersomnias (narcolepsy, idiopathic hypersomnia, etc.)
5. Abnormal nocturnal behaviors
6. Circadian rhythm sleep disorders
7. Sleep disorders in patients with respiratory, cardiac, neurological – neuromuscular, metabolic diseases
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Attended all-night polysomnography (formal sleep study)
It is the cornerstone for the diagnosis of sleep disorders. The patient sleeps in a comfortable, specially designed area, where the basic functions of the body (electroencephalogram, electrooculogram, respiratory and cardiac function assessment, chin electromyogram, leg electromyogram,recordings of oxygen saturation, body position etc.) are recorded with special ultra-modern equipment. At the same time, video recording is performed in order to record possible abnormal behaviors. The recording is monitored during the entire sleep duration and technicians offer their assistant directly to the patients according to the instructions of the laboratory’s Director.
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Polysomnography (sleep study) with the initiation of a positive airway pressure device (Formal PAP titration sleep study)
It is a study like the aforementioned one. During this study, however, respiratory devices (CPAP, BiPAP etc.) are used for the treatment of sleep apnea and/or hyperventilation syndromes (in obesity, neurological – neuromuscular, respiratory diseases).
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Limited-channel sleep recordings
They are performed with special equipment in the patient’s ward. They are applied in cases of clinically suspected sleep apnea syndrome for possible sleep study planning for severely ill patients who are unable to visit the laboratory or under urgent preoperative screening to properly inform the anesthesiologist and treating surgeon about possible sleep apnea syndrome and to take appropriate action.
The sleep laboratory has a monitoring clinic for patients with sleep breathing disorders, and all other sleeping disorders.
