Sleep medicine deals with the causes, diagnosis and treatment of sleep disorders. A sleep medicine physician treats problems such as sleep apnea and snoring, insomnia and narcolepsy. Sleep apnea is when a person actually stops breathing for a few seconds during sleep, and is usually accompanied by loud snoring. Narcolepsy is a disorder of the central nervous system, and is characterized by excessive daytime sleepiness, and a tendency to sleep at inappropriate times, even if the person gets adequate nighttime sleep. Also considered sleep disorders are periodic limb movements and restless legs.

Treatment includes overnight study in a sleep center, where technicians observe, monitor, and analyze brain activity, respiratory function, muscle function and other variables that help diagnose complex sleep disorders. Sometimes a physician may fit a patient may with a device to measure a person's activity, their environmental temperature, light levels and mood state, all recorded by a computer the size of wrist watch. This allows the physician to get objective, accurate data on the patient's daily life, and help to assess sleep problems.

Doctor density varies by specialty and location. Georgia has 54 practicing sleep medicine doctors. Broken out by city, sleep medicine doctor density in Alpharetta is 1, in Athens is 2, in Atlanta is 18, in Augusta is 2, in Austell is 2, in Bremen is 1, in Carrollton is 2, in Conyers is 1, in Cumming is 1, in Dallas is 1, in Decatur is 10, in Douglas is 1, in Duluth is 8, in East Ellijay is 1, in Fayetteville is 5, in Fort Gordon is 1, in Fort Stewart is 1, in Gainesville is 2, in Glennville is 1, in Griffin is 1, in Lawrenceville is 3, in Lithonia is 1, in Macon is 1, in Marietta is 4, in Martinez is 1, in Milledgeville is 1, in Norcross is 1, in Riverdale is 7, in Rome is 1, in Roswell is 2, in Savannah is 1, in Snellville is 2, in Statesboro is 1, in Stockbridge is 7, in Trenton is 1, in Valdosta is 1, in Vidalia is 1, and in Washington is 1.

Georgia is rich in history, from its statehood in 1788, to its tobacco plantations, to its civil rights memorials. Atlanta is its vibrant capital city, and it offers a myriad of music, arts, sports and nightlife. While in Atlanta, visit the world’s largest aquarium, the Woodruff Arts Center, or the Atlanta Botanical Garden. Ride the Old Town Trolley in Savannah, and listen to some live jazz and blues at one of Savannah’s many festivals. Georgia’s mountain parks offer hiking, biking, climbing, and other outdoor activities. On Georgia’s coastline, you can go boating, deep sea fishing or kayaking in the Atlantic. The Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge draws many visitors yearly.

According to 2005 Census estimates, Georgia has a population of 9,072,576. Of this population, 2,319,806 are under the age of 18 and 865,997 are at or above the age of 65.