Sleep apnea dot certification question.

Just renewed my DOT Physical not more then 4 hours ago...no neck measurements taken.

 

(Just my experience w/ Swift) I was diagnosed by a private doctor and by the VA. I told them I had sleep apnea and provided the printout from my machines card. They wanted the printout for school and for orientation. They didn't take any measurements of my neck or waist at school and I didn't have to take another physical for orientation. The only small issue I had at school was the sleep clinic who printed out my info said my usage per day was "low" even though the number of days I use the machine is "high". Orientation hasn't seen the printout yet so not sure if it is really an issue. I don't think it will be. Hope that helps.

 

Perhaps you can show me where it says this in the statute of DOT laws or, because I can assure you, it's not. We keep saying its mandatory but I beg to differ. If it's the case in your situation then it's doctors who are doing it off their own bat, or the company is stipulating it. I've just asked my company about this issue. They are doing nothing about it until it becomes law. There is no law on the books to test for sleep apnea, period, but that's not going to stop some of the big boys to include it in their physicals. That's their prerogative but you have to read up on the rules. Landline trucker mag had a very good article on the topic.
But the good news about this issue is that the free market is driving down the cost of testing already. I saw a recent ad for a home test for $149. That's what we need, let's drive the costs down because otherwise it's going to be one more racket we have to endure. I believe FMCSA has declared war on us.
So if anything we need to fight back and show those clowns that we are not a danger to society when on the road. If anything we are the only ones who take safety seriously

 

I would like to know that myself. Similar situation here.

 

I was disqualified because a doctor thimks I need a sleep apnea test but I have a valid dot card can I use that one still.

 

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[TD="class: titleimage"]https://nrcme.fmcsa.dot.gov/mehandbook/part_4_work_ep.aspx

Click on left side - FMCSA Medical Examiner Handbook to get the PDF.




Guidance/Advisory Criteria — Conditions
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Chronic Sleep Disorders


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[TD]Approximately 70% of the cases of excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) are caused by narcolepsy and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
Treatments for OSA include surgery and continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP). The successfully treated driver may be considered for certification following the recommended waiting period. You should not certify the driver with suspected or untreated sleep apnea until etiology is confirmed and treatment has been shown to be stable, safe, and adequate/effective.
EDS may also be a symptom of another underlying condition, such as:

• Neurological disease.
• Depression.
• Alcohol or other drug use.
• Prescription and/or over-the-counter medication use.

Certification/Recertification — Chronic Sleep Disorders
Waiting period
Minimum — 1 month after starting CPAP
Minimum — 3 months symptom free after surgical treatment
NOTE: If more than one waiting period applies (because of multiple conditions or other comorbid diseases), examine the driver for certification after the completion of the longest waiting period.
Decision
Maximum certification — 1 year
Recommend to certify if:
The driver has:

• Successful nonsurgical therapy with:
  • Multiple sleep latency testing values within the normal range.
  • Resolution of apneas confirmed by repeated sleep study during treatment.
• Continuous successful nonsurgical therapy for 1 month.
• Compliance with continuing nonsurgical therapy.
• Resolution of symptoms following completion of post-surgical waiting period.

Recommend not to certify if:
The driver has:

• Hypoxemia at rest.
• Diagnosis of:
  • Untreated symptomatic OSA.
  • Narcolepsy.
  • Primary (idiopathic) alveolar hypoventilation syndrome.
  • Idiopathic central nervous system hypersomnolence.
  • Restless leg syndrome associated with EDS.

Monitoring/Testing
The driver who is being treated for sleep apnea should remain symptom free and agree to:

• Continue uninterrupted therapy.
• Undergo yearly objective testing (e.g., multiple sleep latency test or maintenance of wakefulness test). See Sleep Disorder Tests.

Follow-up
The driver should have follow-up dependent upon the clinical course of the condition and recommendation of the treating healthcare provider, not to exceed 1 year.
The complete text of the medical conference reports can be accessed from FMCSA Medical Reports.[/TD]
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Thanks to Sam (Admin) for posting the PDF to this link. It is 260 pages long.

http://www.thetruckersreport.com/downloads/fmcsa-medical-examiner-2014.pdf

Great reading on what the FMCSA is looking/guidelines for medical conditions and for your cert.

 

The problem is that the medical examiner handbook doesn't have guidance on how long a negative sleep study is valid for.

Have had this issue come up with other drivers and FMSCA doesn't have a good answer. Due to public law 113-45 they can't give you an answer.