So show of hands...Who wants to send their 3 ½ - year old daughter to a hospital...to sleep in a strange bed with their head wrapped up like an Egyptian mummy and wired to a multitude of blinking sensors?

Here again, it is my most fervent hope that with this series, healthcare professionals like ENT’s and dentists can work together in educating and instructing parents as to the warning signs of airway blockage/dysfunction.

The day of the sleep study, my wife chose to accompany Grace to the hospital, so I stayed home with Georgia. As recounted for me later, Grace did pretty well for the first part of the test.  However, she quickly became agitated when all the wires and the head bandages were revealed. She watched TV for a while, then finally fell asleep a good hour and half past her bedtime.  My wife was awakened around 4:30 by the technician informing her the test was over.  All in all, Grace was monitored for 7.5 hours. Not sure why mother and child were asked to wake up and head home at 4:30 in the morning. A couple hours of additional sleep might have been helpful.

The next day, the test was reviewed by an MD and Sleep Specialist. The following report was generated. 

The report indicates that Grace stopped breathing 5 times an hour, which is considered moderate sleep apnea in children. More importantly, it was considered enough for the ENT to approve the surgery..  Although I was not excited to have Grace endure surgery, I was glad we could finally get her treatment underway. 

Or so I thought.