Excessive sleepiness is a serious symptom that can have many different causes. The common causes are:
- Poor sleep habits - reduced opportunity for sleep or irregular sleep schedule,
- Sleep disorder - obstructive sleep apnea,
- Side effects from certain medications,
- Other underlying medical conditions.
Once you and your doctor have determined the cause of excessive sleepiness, you can create a treatment plan together.
Firstly, the doctor would obtain a thorough history from you. It will important to consider insomnia as many patients who cannot sleep well at night will experience daytime sleepiness. The doctor may use a rating scale to determine how sleepy you are in a variety of life situations. A thorough medical history is indicated. Snoring and obstructive sleep apnea need to be considered. The doctor may also speak with your partner to see how bad your snoring is.
A sleep study is needed to diagnose and determine the severity of obstructive sleep apnea and to detect any abnormal limb movements that may impact on the quality of sleep. MSLT, another sleep study, is done in the daytime to see how fast an individual would fall asleep; this is to diagnose a condition called narcolepsy. Blood tests may also be indicated if the doctor considers other medical problems like thyroid conduction.
