Watermark Medical, Boca Raton, Fla, is launching WM SleepCare, a comprehensive sleep  benefits management program. The Web-based program offers insurance  providers and self-insured employer groups an “end-to-end” program to  manage patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) that includes  utilization oversight and compliance management.

“The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) made it  possible for insurance providers to offer home sleep testing. We quickly  recognized the opportunity to build a sleep benefits management program  with tight controls and utilization oversight, something the insurance  industry is rapidly embracing,” said Sean Heyniger, chief executive  officer of Watermark Medical.

According to Watermark Medical, the system utilizes the company’s  cloud-based platform that improves workflow, integrates therapy  alternatives, and reduces the cost of health care delivery.

“We are transforming the entire industry to a more streamlined and  cost-effective solution, while improving patient care,” said Charlie  Alvarez, president of Watermark Medical.

A very recent  community research study concluded by a Pune-based doctor showed that only 4% of the population actually knows about sleep disorders and sleep apnea. The study showed that 12% of the urban population is at risk fromObstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA).Conducted by Dr Rakesh Datta, it has suggested high incidence of Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)  in the urban population. “Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) is characterised by reduction in blood oxygen levels as the sufferer is unable to breathe sufficiently during sleep. People suffering from this disease may be unaware of this condition and snoring, at times, may be the only hint of its existence. This lack of awareness is like a ticking time bomb and, if untreated, Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) can cause other complications,” said Datta. Read the rest of this entry

Philips Respironics is introducing its first sleep therapy mask built especially for male patients, GoLife for Men.  In the near future, Philips Respironics will release its GoLife for Women mask, which will offer the same customized features designed for a female patient’s face. 

Philips Respironics GoLife for Men nasal pillows mask is used in the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).  The product is the company’s first sleep therapy mask built exclusively for men.

Designed to be the most stable nasal pillows mask available, GoLife for Men has facial contour arms that conform to and hug the patient’s face to maintain a secure seal and stability, even when moving during sleep.  The mask features straightforward, preformed headgear and self-adjusting, optimally angled nasal pillows for a one-step fit.

“When designing GoLife for Men, we listened to what sleep therapy providers, clinicians, and male patients told us they wanted in a nasal pillows mask,” said Maura Weis, director, Sleep Marketing, North America, Philips Home Healthcare Solutions.  “As a result, it is engineered for stability, designed for simplicity, and built for men.  GoLife for Men takes the complexity out of achieving successful nasal pillows therapy for male patients.  In the near future, we will release our GoLife for Women mask, which will offer the same customized features designed for a female patient’s face.”

GoLife has few parts, comes in a FitPack with all sizes (petite, small, medium, and large), and is easy to size and fit.  Used together with Philips Respironics System One Resistance Control, the mask helps to deliver optimum PAP therapy and comfort.

Discover Medical Devices that developed the SomnuSeal mask for OSA (obstructive sleep apnea) patients has started a second clinical trial in Israel with a smaller size SomnuSeal mask that will help non compliant CPAP patients.

There are 350 million obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) patients in the world that require CPAP (continuous positive air pressure) treatment.

Up until now approximately 20 million patients were diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and require continuous CPAP treatment. Only 7 million of them agree to receive the treatment and 13 million do not. Therefore every increase of 10% of compliance among non compliant patients may help an additional 1.3 million diagnosed patients. (Studies by John Hopkins demonstrate that 46% of untreated obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) patients die younger and therefore it is very important to find solutions that will help those patients receive treatment!). Read the rest of this entry

Obstructive sleep apnea may be the underlying cause of awakening and urination in men with enlarged prostates, a new study suggests.

The study included men aged 55 to 75 who were diagnosed with benign prostate enlargement (BPE) and reported nighttime urination (nocturia) at least once nightly. They were compared to a control group of same-age men who had no BPE and one or no nocturia episodes per night.

The Israeli researchers found that 57.8 percent of the men with BPE may have obstructive sleep apnea and that the sleep disorder may be the actual cause of the sleep awakenings the men believe are caused by the need to urinate. Obstructive sleep apnea is characterized by snoring, pauses in a person’s breathing that cause awakenings, and also daytime sleepiness.

The study, by the team at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, is published in the March/April issue of the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine. Read the rest of this entry

Royal Philips Electronics announced today a global partnership with the World Association of Sleep Medicine (WASM), as official sponsor of World Sleep Day 2011, being held across the globe on Friday, March 18. This partnership illustrates Philips’ expanding efforts to increase awareness of how sleep impacts people’s health and well-being all around the world, on a daily basis.

“Philips is honored to be working with the World Association of Sleep Medicine,” commented Dr. David White, Chief Medical Officer for Philips Home Healthcare Solutions and a Professor of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School. “Through the sponsorship of the World Sleep Day we aim to increase people’s understanding of the seriousness of sleep disorders, such as obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) which, if not properly managed, can have a significant impact on a person’s health and well-being.” Read the rest of this entry

Singapore has been celebrating World Sleep Day, which is March 18, by deploying self-assessment kiosks throughout hospitals to help its citizens find out if they are at risk for obstructive sleep apnea, or OSA.

The first of such self assessment kiosk was installed on March 1.

obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)  sufferers stop breathing repeatedly during sleep, which happens when the upper airway is blocked by a large tongue or extra tissue in the throat.

Symptoms include loud snoring, choking during sleep, poor memory, feeling irritable and excessive daytime sleepiness.

An estimated 15 percent of the country’s population suffer from obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), but the number of patients is expected to rise with increased awareness of this condition.

Source:TVOnline.Com

Sleep is a basic human need — a crucial component of survival, much like breathing, eating a healthy diet or getting enough exercise. World Sleep Day is designed to raise awareness of sleep as a human privilege that is often compromised by the habits of modern life.A good night’s sleep is vital for the health and well-being of people of all ages. This is the message the World Association of Sleep Medicine (WASM) will be promoting during the fourth-annual World Sleep Day on Friday, March 18, 2011. Organized by the World Sleep Day Committee (co-chaired by Antonio Culebras and Liboro Parrino), this worldwide event is a platform for medical professionals to deliver the message of the importance of healthy sleep to the public. Read the rest of this entry

SleepApneaDisorder/[ Press Release ]/ KEY BISCAYNE, FL/- The Pankey Institute for Advanced Dental Education is proud to announce its introductory course in Dental Sleep Medicine. With the availability of the Pankey condominiums for lodging, participants will have the opportunity to wear a home sleep monitor, as well as adjust and wear their own oral appliance while at the course. The first session will be held July 10-14, 2011.

The topics to be explored include:

• An overview of normal human sleep, Sleep Disordered Breathing (SDB) and its systemic consequences
• The medical model for diagnosis and treatment of SDB, including details of medical diagnostic (polysomnography) and treatment (CPAP) modalities
• Dental screening for SDB, including questionnaires and dental, head and neck examination
• A literature-based view of the design, effectiveness, and morbidities of oral appliance therapy Read the rest of this entry

SleepApneaDisorder/ [ Press Release ] / Philadelphia, PA (PRWEB) March 15, 2011/University Services, a Philadelphia-based multi-specialty medical services company, is excited to introduce pm-Assist? Sleep Scoring & Interpretation Service. pm-Assist? allows employers or medical professionals using home sleep testing devices to upload raw data that is scored by Registered Polysomnographic Technicians (RPSGT), interpreted by Board Certified Sleep Physicians, and then receive a diagnostic report in as little as 24 hours compared to a month or more for lab-based sleep testing.

The pm-Assist? program is unique due to the fact that each RPSGT and Board Certified Sleep Physician is an employee of University Services, not a network of unaffiliated physicians or technicians. Our Board Certified Sleep Physicians medically licensed in all 50 states provide a consistent level of service nationwide. Diagnostic reports are issued with treatment recommendations based on the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) guidelines. These qualifications provide medical professionals the highest standard in sleep care night after night. Read the rest of this entry

Current research  indicates that almost 50 per cent of type-2 diabetics in India also suffer from the obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) survey reveals that nearly 9.3 per cent of the adult population in urban and metro areas in India suffer from sleep apnea, says Aparajito Mukherjee, Country Head, ResMed India.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), also known as sleep apnea, is a breathing disorder during sleep when the upper airway partially or completely collapses, causing obstruction in breathing and restricts airflow. This causes the person to wake up and it can happen as many as hundreds of times per night.

Snoring is a common symptom of Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). Other common signs and symptoms include excessive daytime sleepiness, obesity, high blood pressure, morning headaches, inability to concentrate and depression.

Sleep disorders are becoming more and more common every year. In fact, there are millions of Americans who have at least one of these disorders. The most frequent sleep disorders are insomnia and snoring; however, the most dangerous disorder is sleep apnea. Sleep apnea occurs when a person stops breathing during the night for lapses of one minute. 

There are three kinds of sleep apnea: obstructive sleep apnea, central sleep apnea and mixed sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when there is an obstruction of the airway passages of your body. On the other hand, Central sleep apnea means that the airway passages are not blocked; instead, the brain is not able to properly control the muscles involved in breathing. Finally, mixed sleep apnea is a case when the two mentioned cases are combined.  Read the rest of this entry

A currently released report from the American Thoracic Society recommends research priorities for the incorporation into healthcare systems of ambulatory management of adults with obstructive sleep apnea.

The report was published in the March 1 issue of Proceedings of the American Thoracic Society, specifically identifies barriers preventing incorporation of portable monitor testing into clinical management pathways and suggests research and development for addressing those barriers.

Diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) involves polysomnography to measure a patient’s breathing and oxygen level during sleep. Polysomnography(PSG) generally takes place at special healthcare facilities, resulting in limited accessibility for patients, especially in rural areas.

Lately,the use of less expensive, more accessible portable home monitoring to diagnose and manage patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) has gained favor, but quite a few studies have examined its use and patient outcomes.

“There is also a need to develop clinical sleep research networks capable of performing large, prospective studies.”

The report placed forward its recommendations for research study design and methodology, including the need to standardize technology, identify patients who would be “best fit” for ambulatory management of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), ensure patient safety and identify sources of research funding.

The American Thoracic Society has released a new official report recommending research priorities in incorporating ambulatory management of adults with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) into healthcare systems. The report identifies barriers preventing incorporation of portable monitor testing into clinical management pathways and recommends research and development needed to address those barriers.

The statement appears in the March 1, 2011, issue of the Proceedings of the American Thoracic Society.

It is estimated thatobstructive sleep apnea (OSA)occurs in roughly 20 million Americans, and occurs when the upper airway becomes constricted during sleep, blocking normal airflow and causing breathing to stop temporarily. Obesity is the greatest risk factor for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), but the disorder can occur in people who are not overweight. obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is now widely recognized as a major public health concern and studies have linked obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and motor vehicle accidents. obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is diagnosed using polysomnography (PSG), a technique that measures a patient’s breathing and oxygen level during sleep. polysomnography (PSG) is generally performed at special healthcare facilities, resulting in limited accessibility to patients, specifically in rural areas. polysomnography (PSG) is expensive and patients have limited access to this specialized testing. In recent years, the use of less expensive, more accessible portable home monitoring to diagnose and manage patients with  obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)has gained favor, but studies regarding its use and patient outcomes are lacking. Read the rest of this entry