Sleep Medicine

Physicians' Clinic of Iowa Sleep Medicine includes a team of neurologists who specialize in sleep medicine in addition to neurology. These doctors also provide care at the Eastern Iowa Sleep Center. They focus on helping patients determine what's interfering with a full night's rest.

What do PCI sleep medicine specialists treat?

• Obstructive Sleep Apnea & Other Sleep Breathing Disorders - Forty-five percent of normal adults snore at least occasionally and 25 percent are habitual snorers. Snoring may be an indication of obstructed breathing and should not be taken lightly. By working with both an otolaryngologist (Ear, Nose and Throat physician) and a sleep medicine specialist, you can determine the anatomic source of your snoring as well as the affects it has on your sleep. At PCI, our specially-trained providers, Cindy Morrison, ARNP; Jill Miller, ARNP; Megan Raddatz, ARNP; Lori Schumann, ARNP; Scott Geisler, MD; Andrew Peterson, MD; and Robert Struthers, MD, can get you started on the road to recovery from sleep breathing disorders. You can make an appointment by clicking here >>
   
• Insomnia Disorders - Nearly 3 million Americans suffer from some degree of insomnia, a persistent disorder that can make it hard to fall asleep, hard to stay asleep or both, despite the opportunity for adequate sleep. Those with insomnia often take 30 minutes or more to fall asleep and may get only six or fewer hours of sleep for three or more nights a week over a month or more. If insomnia is affecting your quality of life, it's time to see a doctor.
   
• Narcolepsy & Hypersomnia - Primary hypersomnia and narcolepsy are similar, however, those with hypersomnia might sleep up to 10 hours or more, and are very difficult to wake during this time. Despite this deep sleep, they still feel tired during the day, and need multiple naps, even at times or in places that would not be considered socially acceptable. Like the prolonged sleep periods, naps often provide only short periods of relief from the chronic tiredness.
  
  Narcolepsy, on the other hand, is a chronic brain disorder that involves poor control of sleep-wake cycles. People with narcolepsy experience periods of extreme daytime sleepiness and sudden, uncontrollable bouts of sleep that can strike at any time. These “sleep attacks” usually last a few seconds to several minutes. People can unwillingly fall asleep while at work or at school, when having a conversation, playing a game, eating a meal, or, most dangerously, when driving or operating other types of machinery. In addition to daytime sleepiness, other major symptoms may include cataplexy (a sudden loss of voluntary muscle tone while awake that makes a person go limp or unable to move), vivid dream-like images or hallucinations, as well as total paralysis just before falling asleep or just after waking-up.
   
• Nocturnal Seizures - Any form of epilepsy can occur during sleep, but some types of epilepsy are more likely to be restricted exclusively to sleep. These are sometimes called nocturnal seizures. Some seizures occur only during sleep while others happen anytime. Studies have shown that 10 - 45 percent of people with epilepsy have seizures that occur during sleep or with sleep deprivation.
   
• Periodic Limb Movements (PLM) - Periodic limb movements can occur in different forms. Periodic Limb Movement of Sleep (PLMA) is characterized by involuntary leg twitching or jerking movements during sleep that typically occur every 15 to 40 seconds, sometimes throughout the night. The symptoms cause repeated awakening and severely disrupted sleep. Although many individuals with Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS) also develop PLMS, most people with PLMS do not experience RLS. People who have PLMS and do not have RLS or another cause for the PLMS may be diagnosed with periodic limb movement disorder (PLMD). PLMD may be a variant of RLS and thus respond to similar treatments.
   
• Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) - As much as 10 percent of the U.S. population may have RLS, a neurological disorder in which throbbing, pulling, creeping or other unpleasant sensations in the legs causes an uncontrollable, and sometimes overwhelming, urge to move them. Symptoms usually occur at night. Most people with RLS have difficulty falling asleep and staying asleep. Left untreated, the condition causes exhaustion and daytime fatigue. Many people with RLS report that their job, personal relations, and activities of daily living are strongly affected as a result of their sleep deprivation. They are often unable to concentrate, have impaired memory, or fail to accomplish daily tasks. It also can make traveling difficult and can cause depression. 
   
• Sleepwalking (Somnambulism) - Between 1 and 15 percent of people sleepwalk. Sleepwalking usually involves more than just walking. Often, a series of complex behaviors are carried out while sleeping. Because a sleepwalker typically remains in deep sleep throughout the episode, he or she may be difficult to awaken and will probably not remember the sleepwalking incident. Adult sleepwalking is common, and is usually not associated with any significant underlying psychiatric or psychological problems. Common triggers can include sleep deprivation, sedative agents (including alcohol), febrile illnesses and certain medications.
   
• Shift Work Sleep Disorders - Shift work disorder can be caused by night shifts, rotating shifts or even an early morning shift. Most people who work shifts will experience some difficulty with insomnia, often waking up after fewer than 7-9 hours of sleep or feeling drowsy while on the job. For people with shift work disorder, however, this is an ongoing problem that continually causes symptoms and starts to interfere with work or family life.

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Articles by PCI Sleep Specialists

• When Snoring Isn't Harmless
• 5 Ways You Give Yourself Insomnia
• What Shift Workers Need to Know About Sleep Disorders

Recommended Websites

• MedLine Plus: Sleep Disorders
• National Center on Sleep Disorders Research
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Sleep and Sleep Disorders
• National Sleep Foundation: Sleep Disorders
• SleepEducation.com: Sleep Disorders
• Inspire Upper Airway Stimulation: Possible solution for obstructive sleep apnea sufferers who can't use CPAP. Your sleep medicine provider will discuss all possible options for treatment of sleep apnea.

The Eastern Iowa Sleep Center (EISC) is a community partnership between Mercy Medical Center, Physicians' Clinic of Iowa, and UnityPoint-St. Luke's Hospital. EISC is an Independent Diagnostic Testing Facility (IDTF) and is accredited by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

Dr. Geisler, Dr. Peterson and Dr. Struthers are the three sleep medicine specialists who provide care at EISC.

EISC has a 20-room facility open seven nights a week for sleep studies. Each study is conducted by a sleep technician and then evaluated by a board certified sleep medicine physician who coordinates with your healthcare provider to outline an effective treatment plan.

Learn more about Eastern Iowa Sleep Center >

Improving Your Sleep Habits - Dr. Scott Geisler

Obstructive Sleep Apnea - Dr. Robert Struthers

Insomnia - Dr. Robert Struthers

Narcolepsy - Dr. Andrew Peterson

Periodic Limb Movements (PLM) - Dr. Scott Geisler

Nocturnal Seizures - Dr. Andrew Peterson

Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) - Dr. Scott Geisler

Sleepwalking (Somnambulism) - Dr. Andrew Peterson

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Outreach Clinic

•   Buchanan County Health Center
•   Community Memorial Hospital, Sumner
•   Crossing Rivers Health, Prairie du Chien
•   Eastern Iowa Sleep Center, Belle Plaine
•   Jones Regional Medical Center
•   PCI Specialty Care, Waterloo
•   Regional Medical Center
•   Virginia Gay Hospital

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Provider

Tracy Alshouse, PA-C Vijay Aluri, MD, RhMSUS Amber Arthurs, ARNP, NP-C Heidi Barnhart, PA-C Aubrey Barton, PA-C Michael Brooks, MD, FACP, FACR J. Renee Buchanan, MD, MA Rasa Buntinas, MD Gina Burke, OTR/L, CHT Rikka Burroughs, ARNP, NP-C, CUNP Ann Camblin, DPT, MPT Carrie Campbell, ARNP, AGACNP-BC Kevin Carpenter, MD, FACS Kenneth Cearlock, MD Shereen Chang, MD Bogdan Cherascu, MD Peter Chimenti, MD William Clayton, MS, RD, LD, CC Lisa Coester, MD, FAAOS Brandey Cordes, MS, FAAA Ryan Dempewolf, MD, FACS Rodney Dempewolf, DPM Michelle Dole, DPM Kevin Eck, MD, FAAOS Scott Ekroth, MD Daniel Fabiano, MD, FAAOS Melissa Fagan, ARNP, FNP-BC William Fusselman, MD Amy Ganske, ARNP, FNP-BC Scott Geisler, MD Justin Gilbert, MD Kelsey Grimm, PA-C M. Tory Haefner, DPT, CLT Lesley Haro, ARNP, FNP-C Kimberly Harris, ARNP, FNP-C David Hart, MD, FAAOS Craig Haverman, PTA, ATC/L Jennifer Herting, MPT MaryAnn Heying, PTA, COTA/L Gregory Hill, MD, FAAOS Logan Hoxie, MD, FACS James Huber, DO Scott Huebsch, MD, FACS Gregory Janda, MD Melissa Janssen, ARNP, FNP-BC Bharat Jenigiri, MD Angie Jenkins, MA, CCC-A David Jerkins, MD Robert Keating, MD, FACS Cheryl Koester, MA, CCC-A Laurence Krain, MD Jared Kray, DO Jeffrey Krivit, MD, FACS Meiying Kuo, MD, FACS, FASSH Cassandra Lange, MD, FAAOS David Lawrence, MD, FACS Brendan Leiran, PA-C James Levett, MD, FACS Paul Lottes, MD Ryan McBride, DPM Jill Miller, ARNP, FNP-BC Steven Mindrup, MD Cynthia Morrison, ARNP, FNP-C Sandeep Munjal, MD Ritu Munjal, MD, CCD Jeffrey Nassif, MD, FAAOS Jeffrey Nielsen, MD, FACS Clifford Novak, MD, FAAOS Andrew Nowell, MD, FACS Kerri Nowell, MD, FACS James Pape, MD, FAAOS Peter Pardubsky, MD, FAAOS, FASSH Erica Pasterski, ARNP, FNP-C Ann Paulsen, OTR/L, CHT Thomas Paynter, MD. FAAOS Gina Perri, MD Andrew Peterson, MD, FAASM Fred Pilcher, MD, FAAOS Charles Pruchno, MD Nicole Pruchno, ARNP, FNP-BC Megan Raddatz, ARNP, NP-C Jeffrey Ralston, MD Melanie Ramsey, ARNP, FNP-BC Patti Recker, PA-C Erin Reisner, OTR/L, MOT Paul Renz, MD, FACS Teri Rexroth, ORT/L, MOT, CLT Thomas Richardson, MD Jonathan Rippentrop, MD Thomas Rogers, DO David Rubsam, MPT, OCS Heidi Sandersfeld, PA-C Lori Schumann, ARNP-C Harinder Singh, MD Robert Struthers, MD Erin Swailes, ARNP, FNP-C Kyle Switzer, DO Michael Telisak, MD, FACS Lesley Vancura, ARNP, FNP-BC Steven Wahle, MD, FACS Garry Weide, DO, FACOS Matthew White, MD, FAAOS Jason Willer, MPT

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