NTSB Call for Sleep Apnea Screening
The NTSB has recommended that the FAA change the application for an airman medical certificate to request information related to sleep apnea. The NTSB also made other recommendations directed at determining the impact of short-haul, multi-segment flights on pilot fatigue.
The Aug. 7 letter addresses pilot fatigue and recommends that the application “elicit specific information about any previous diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea and about the presence of specific risk factors for that disorder.”
The FAA requires a report of the initial sleep study that diagnoses obstructive sleep apnea and a maintenance of wakefulness test after therapy is begun to confirm that there is no excessive daytime sleepiness. Pilots with a history of controlled sleep apnea are then followed annually by the FAA under a special-issuance authorization. The AOPA Pilot Information Center provides resources about sleep apnea, including treatment options acceptable to the FAA and follow-up requirements.
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends oral appliances as the first choice of treatment for mild to moderate sleep apnea. Here at DesertSmiles we provide this service along with home testing to determine the level of apnea present and the effectiveness of treatment provided. For more information visit www.desertsmiles.com or www.phoenix.ihatecpap.com.
For a cosmetic dentist in Phoenix or Glendale, Arizona, or a sedation dentist in Phoenix or Glendale, Arizona contact Dr. Don Wilcox at 602-978-1790.
This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 2nd, 2009 at 2:43 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
