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Article: Heart failure patients should be screened for sleep apnea.(Cardiovascular Medicine)(Clinical report)
- Article from:
- Family Practice News
- Article date:
- December 1, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 International Medical News Group. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Seattle -- There is no standard way to screen for sleep apnea in patients with heart failure, but there are several screening models to choose from, Dr. Steven M. Scharf said at the annual meeting of the Heart Failure Society of America.
Sleep apnea commonly accompanies heart failure, and can be treated, though there's little high-quality evidence that treatment alters mortality or quality of life. Still, "you certainly should screen all your heart failure patients," said Dr. Scharf, professor of medicine and director of the sleep disorders lab at the University of Maryland, Baltimore.
One good clinical screening tool is the Berlin Questionnaire, which ...