Sleep Apnea: 'If We're Not Diagnosing It, We're Missing It'

Sleep apnea is a condition with consistent results in treatment, but getting patients the help they need can be very important. It can also affect heart disease, blood pressure, and other parts of a person's overall health.

Maurits S. Boon, MD, from Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, said that with apnea affecting so many aspects of a patient's life it is important that primary care physicians pay attention to the symptoms they present with. "If we're not diagnosing it, we're missing it," he said. Boon added that while most people believe the only treatment for the condition is a CPAP machine, technology has advanced to the point where that is no longer the case.