Benefits of a sleep disorders clinic in a Veterans Administration Medical Center

The Sleep Disorders Clinic at the San Diego Veterans Administration Medical Center provides a diagnostic service within a public hospital. Case records of the first 117 patients receiving polysomnograms in our clinic were reviewed. Of these patients, 44 percent were found to have sleep apnea, 24 percent nocturnal myoclonus and 8 percent narcolepsy. Our experience shows that in a health maintenance organization, a sleep disorders clinic provides diagnostic information (based on a polysomnogram and a sleep history) which is very helpful in the final diagnosis of medical disorders. Very few recordings were noncontributory. In this setting, a sleep disorders clinic is justified by its rich diagnostic yield.