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MEDICAL ANIMATION TRANSCRIPT: If you have obstructive sleep apnea, your breathing pauses for brief periods while you're asleep. Normally when you breathe in, air flows in through your mouth and nose and down your throat, also called the pharynx. Air then slows down your windpipe, or trachea, spreading through a tree-like structure of smaller tubes into your lungs. Each time you breathe in, negative suction pressure pulls the soft tissues in your mouth and pharynx inward. The muscles in your pharynx respond by pulling the soft tissues outward again, which keeps your airway open. When you sleep, it's normal for the muscles in your mouth, tongue, and pharynx to relax slightly, but not enough to block your airway. If you have obstructive sleep apnea, the muscles of your mouth and pharynx may relax too much. Your tongue drops onto the soft tissue in the roof of your mouth, pressing it against the back of your throat. This completely blocks the flow of air into your lungs. The lack of oxygen in your lungs wakes you up. You may gasp for air to reestablish air flow before falling asleep again. The cycle of apnea and waking up may happen many times at night, preventing restful sleep. Factors that may contribute to obstructive sleep apnea include obesity, because more fat may be present in the walls of the pharynx, a small or receding jaw with a narrowed airway, loss of muscle tone in your pharynx due to aging, and swollen tonsils. Common symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea are snoring, morning headaches, chronic daytime sleepiness, fatigue, irritability, and impaired concentration. Left untreated, obstructive sleep apnea may lead to complications, such as high blood pressure, heart disease, irregular heart beats, called arrhythmias, stroke, and diabetes. Your doctor may recommend lifestyle changes to treat obstructive sleep apnea, including losing weight, sleeping on your side, not smoking, and avoiding substances that can make you sleepy, such as alcohol and sedatives. For mild or moderate obstructive sleep apnea, an oral appliance may keep your airway open. This device works by pulling your jaw forward and moving both your tongue and the roof of your mouth away from the back of your throat. The most common and effective treatment for obstructive sleep apnea is a continuous positive airway pressure or CPAP machine. This machine pumps air through a tube into a mask that fits over your nose or both your nose and mouth. The mild air pressure of the CPAP machine helps keep your airway open, enabling you to get a deep, restful sleep.
"Whether it's demonstrating a rotator cuff tear, neck movement a few
milliseconds after rear impact, or a proposed lumbar fusion, the Doe Report
represents an instant on-line database of medical illustration for
health-care and legal professionals.
Illustrations can be purchased 'as is' or modified within hours and sent
either electronically or mounted on posterboard. An illustration is worth a
thousand words, as juries perk up and look intently to capture concepts
that are otherwise too abstract. Start with good illustrations, a clear and
direct voice, a view of the jury as 12 medical students on day one of
training, and your expert testimony becomes a pleasure, even on cross
examination. An experienced trial lawyer should also emphasize these
illustrations at the end of trial, as a means of visually reinforcing key
concepts covered.
As a treating physician, I also use these accurate illustrations to educate
my own patients about their medical conditions. The Doe Report is an
invaluable resource, and its authors at MLA have always been a pleasure to
work with."
Richard E. Seroussi M.D., M.Sc.
Diplomate, American Boards of Electrodiagnostic Medicine and PM&R
Seattle Spine & Rehabilitation Medicine
www.seattlespine.info
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Robert F. Linton, Jr.
Linton & Hirshman
Cleveland, OH
"I have a medical illustration created by Medical Legal Art at the beginning
of every case to tell the client's story, usually before I depose the
defendant doctor. The work product and cost-efficiency are outstanding. It
is a situation where, as a trial lawyer, I don't leave home without it."
Rockne Onstad
Attorney at Law
Austin, TX
"It is my experience that it's much more effective to show a jury what
happened than simply to tell a jury what happened. In this day and age where
people are used to getting information visually, through television and
other visual media, I would be at a disadvantage using only words.
I teach a Litigation Process class at the University of Baltimore Law Schooland use [Medical Legal Art's] animation in my class. Students always saythat they never really understood what happened to [to my client] until theysaw the animation.
Animations are powerful communication tools that should be used wheneverpossible to persuade juries."
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Medical Legal Art creates medical demonstrative evidence (medical
illustrations, drawings, pictures, graphics, charts, medical animations,
anatomical models, and interactive presentations) for use during legal
proceedings, including research, demand letters, client conferences,
depositions, arbitrations, mediations, settlement conferences, mock jury
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