DO Sleep Apnea

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I was wondering if I could get feedback from anyone regarding how medical schools look upon applicants who use sleep apnea as an "illness/disorder" affecting their undergraduate performance? I was diagnosed with sleep apnea when I was seventeen years old, and while I do not have horrible stats (cGPA 3.70, sGPA 3.58) I was curious if it would be worthwhile to provide this information on my upcoming application? Any help is appreciated.

If you only got diagnosed late in your undergrad, got treated and as a result got much better grades, I could see it as a mitigating factor.

You were diagnosed at 17 and presumably treated (if you needed treatment). Your grades are what they are. People deploy to war zones with CPAP machines and function just fine, so I can't see it being accepted as an excuse for your performance.

Your GPA looks fine. A 3.7 is actually at the beginning of the competitive range. It's always very risky blaming bad grades on a permanent illness, because the assumption is going to be this: If you illness worsened your performance in undergrad, it will worsen your performance in medical school and as a doctor. If you tell others your illness is debilitating, guess what? People will think your illness is debilitating.

Dude, if you're applying to DO with a 3.7, with a decent mcat score you are golden at any school even if you're an alien. I doubt it would hurt you.

Again, my apnea is not something I am looking to use as an excuse. I was merely interested in if it should be included in application.

To provide you with more information, after being diagnosed at seventeen I underwent a tonsillectomy, adenoidectomy, and reducation of my turbinates. A repeat sleep study showed that although my apneic episodes decreased compared to the first study, they were still prevalent at about a once/minute interval. I was then set up with CPAP and it was recommended I undergo orthognathic jaw surgery or continued fatigue/lethargy would be expected. This is all well documented. Would it be pointless to include in my application for admission groups to consider?

Originally Posted by JustMeditate

Your GPA looks fine. A 3.7 is actually at the beginning of the competitive range. It's always very risky blaming bad grades on a permanent illness, because the assumption is going to be this: If you illness worsened your performance in undergrad, it will worsen your performance in medical school and as a doctor. If you tell others your illness is debilitating, guess what? People will think your illness is debilitating.

That is exactly the point I was trying to get at with this question. Thanks for the response. I have thought about including my apnea experience in my personal statement as I did receive awesome care from my ENT and Pulm.

I have thought about including my apnea experience in my personal statement as I did receive awesome care from my ENT and Pulm.

That would be fine. Just be careful not to imply that your sleep apnea in anyway affects your ability to become an excellent doctor. It may be an inconvenience, but given your GPA, it shouldn't be construed as a potential problem. Don't give adcoms a reason to construe it as a potential limitation.