sleep apnea?

May not be in the regs but its at a companies discretion.

 

Also when, and, or, if you lose weight wanting to get off the machine, you will have to pay out of pocket to get another test. Once your on the machine, that's it, companies do not care that just because you lost weight, and no longer meet criteria for needing to have a sleep study in the first place, you already tested positive; now it's up to you to prove it negative.

 

No, there isn't any FMCSA regs yet. It is up to discretion of carrier and/or doctor doing the DOT physical. That is why I mentioned the take at home kits. In the event that anyone gets the gut feeling they are going to be asked to take the study, they can pre-empt that by taking one of the home kits for a lot cheaper. If one gets told to take one, and they do not have the results from taking one of the certified home tests, then they are stuck with the full price lab version. The carrier will probably not let a driver operate a truck unless they have the testing done.

Since the regs seem to be moving in the direction of this becoming more common place, it seems prudent to maybe consider getting a home test kit and doing the sleep study on your own. It would save time, money, and hassle later, and also let you know one way or the other if you have a problem and get working on the solution like cpap or something and be ahead of the game.

 

no regs yet. but it's defenitly law. govt required it starting this year or maybe late last year. it's been talked about for over a year on the radio.

by the way. what is the bmi and weight before your considered sleepless. ?????

i know i have high bmi. but i'm only around 240 pounds for 6 feet.

i don't snore unless my sinuses start to plug up. and i've never been a constant sleeper like the govt wishes i was. although, i do sleep longer in my own bed then i do in the truck.

they need to look at a study of actual movement vs. just sitting there. if i'm at home or whatever and i'm moving around. no problem. but i'll defenitely be probably wanting a nap when i do get home. but to just sit there holding a steering wheel. who wouldn't get sleepy. boringest job in the world.

 

Bmi is around 30, neck size is typically 18" after those numbers is when they say you need a sleep test. Might not be those exactly but I'm close. Some companies can be different, some could say 33 bmi, or 17" neck.

 

That is what I find to be interesting. They spout off about BMI and neck size. But what about your body fat percentage? I am 6' and just weighed in at 275. I have had an 18.5" neck since I was 20 years old. It gets to be fun finding a dress shirt because to fit my neck and chest size the waist looks like a circus tent. I am one of those people that is truly big boned. While I do have some weight that I could loose, if I were to get to the weight that the Dr's have on their height/weight charts, approximately 180lbs, I would be emaciated and struggling to stay alive. Luckily I have a Doc that has more than one firing brain cell and realizes that BMI and neck size are not what it is all about.

 

A professional athlete or body builder would qualify for a sleep apnea test. Another episode of government gone wild.

 

Please read my first post. BMI is not the issue. BMI is a screening tool to decide if someone may have sleep apnea.

Now if you go to FMCSA web site they have a page devoted to the subject. And the regs state that a driver will have no medical condition that will interfere with his ability to drive safely. Now there are many studies that many times people have fallen asleep at a stoplight waiting for it to turn green. So this is not an issue

Now for the web page
http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/safety-security/sleep-apnea/tools/Driving-with-Sleep-Apnea.aspx

Then I found an article written on the American Family Physicians web site that does a good job summarizing the situation. The material on sleep apnea is close to the bottom of the article. Here is the address
http://www.aafp.org/afp/2010/0415/p975.html#afp20100415p975-b29

Also many times FMCSA while they are in the process of rule making will issue papers and guidance. One of those documents is at
http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/TOPICS/mep/report/Sleep-MEP-Panel-Recommendations-508.pdf

these articles are as close to black and white as you are going to find.

Hope this helps

 

You said the magic words..Government Gone Wild...It is just a matter of time we are all going to be on Lockdown.

 

my brother is an inch taller then me. 6' 1"

he weighs about 200 pounds.

no way in heck do i want to be as skinny as him.