Dr. Barker evaluates Boggs at his annual exam NSF found pilots,
train operators, and truck drivers reported being tired on the
job, and sleepiness affecting their work. More than 40 percent
of Americans report a lack of sleep at night. Those numbers
prove especially dangerous within the transportation industry.
Scott Boggs holds a commercial drivers license, or CDL, in order
to drive a dump truck for Johnson and Galyon in Knoxville. At a
check-up two years ago, his doctor recognized symptoms of a
sleep disorder. "I went to renew my health card, which I have to
have every two years, and when I went for it he turned me down,"
Boggs explained. "[My doctor] said I was overweight and my neck
size was larger than it should be." Boggs was diagnosed with
Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), a sleep disorder that occurs when
an individual's upper airway closes off while they sleep,
causing the person to temporarily quit breathing. "Even though
the person is trying to breathe, the upper airway closes, blocks
the airflow, oxy