Sleep Medicine

Abstract This book provides accurate concise information concerning the evaluation and the treatment of patients with sleep problems. Because management of sleep disorders requires an understanding of sleep itself, the first portion discribes aspects of normal sleep. The remainder of the book follows an approach based on the clinical method, in which the chief complaints (the symptoms and the signs) and the psychosocial and the medical background of the individual are used, in conjunction with an understanding of the neurobiological and psychological basis of sleep disorders, to formulate a clinical assessment. The results of polysomnographic studies and other laboratory tests supplement and redefine clinical information and assist with consideration of treatment options.