Naval Aviation and Sleep Apnea

[Sam I am]

When I was Active (99-08) and SEL-RES (09-13), this was a loss of flight status (at least I believe it was...no one in their right mind would ever say those words out loud around a flight doc). In light of the FAA's new policy towards Sleep Apnea as a reason to test BMI, I'm assuming the FAA doesn't care if a pilot has sleep apnea as long as they're being treated and aren't obese. What's the Navy's stance? Does a diagnosis result in an instant loss of flight status or is it waiverable? Are the afflicted considered non-deployable? I was a little surprised there wasn't already a thread on this topic...

 

[FlyBoyd]

The NAMI Waiver guide is in a sticky thread in the docs corner.

Chapter 10
Waivers may be considered for OSA with UPPP and/or CPAP after complete resolution of symptoms and documentation of no Excessive Daytime Sleepiness (EDS) by vigilance testing.

IRT deploying... All I know is I have seen some people with OSA get turned back from forward deployed IAs. Something about reliable power for the CPAP or some crap like that.

Also, http://www.eaa.org/news/2013/2013-12-19_faa-to-delay-sleep-apnea-policy.asp

 

[Sam I am]

Ah....it's under Neurology...I was looking under Gynecology.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA): OSA has emerged as a major sleep disorder and accounts for
the majority of requests for sleep related waiver submissions. Members generally present with
complaints of excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) and snoring. Estimates are that OSA afflicts
1-10% of the general public and has been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular
complications, especially hypertension. Prevalence in aviation personnel is not known.
Accurate diagnosis of OSA requires polysomnograghy (PSG) at a sleep disorders laboratory. An
important OSA variant is Upper Airway Resistance Syndrome (UARS). UARS does not show
the characteristic apneas of OSA, but arousals correlate with excessively negative intrathoracic
pressures on esophageal manometry. Manometry is not part of the routine sleep study, and
therefore UARS is usually a presumptive diagnosis when a snoring, tired, sleep-fragmented
patient responds to nasal continuous airway pressure (CPAP). CPAP is considered the treatment
of first choice in OSA. CPAP may be used for designated aviation personnel. CPAP use IS
NOT approved for aviation applicants. There has been concern raised regarding the deployability
of members on ship with CPAP, however CPAP has been successfully deployed in the aircraft
carrier environment. Approval for use of CPAP aboard ship must be obtained from the
Commanding Officer of the ship in advance (with the Senior Medical Officer's endorsement).
Another option is uvulopharyngopalatoplasty (UPPP). UPPP is very effective for treating
snoring associated with OSA, but has a less than 50% cure rate for apnea. Oral appliances are
less effective than UPPP and not well tolerated, but are a noninvasive alternative in mild to
moderate cases. Both are considered second line therapies. Waivers may be considered for OSA
with UPPP and/or CPAP after complete resolution of symptoms and documentation of no
Excessive Daytime Sleepiness (EDS) by vigilance testing. EDS must be documented objectively
(for more details go to The Nerve Center).