Sleep Technology

There are few things as frustrating in the sleep lab as a patient who can’t — or won’t — sleep. Barring the use of a sleeping pill, how can this situation be avoided? Consider the role of cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBTI) techniques and how these may ease insomnia during an overnight sleep study.

I’m sure you read the title and wondered “What does Snapchat have to do with filling beds in a sleep center?” Bunny ears and limb leads? Location filters and 10-20 paste? I hope this article will help connect the two.

It is very common to have patients with occasional to frequent restless nights followed by increased sleepiness during the day, and subsequent performance issues. In addition to the immediate impact of excessive daytime sleepiness and dysfunction, there is potential to develop chronic insomnia. There is also considerable data that links chronic insomnia to increased risk for diabetes, obesity, hypertension, plus an impact on the personal safety of an individual with chronic insomnia.

This is the fourth article in a series on the changing face of sleep technology. The past three articles focused on technology and the economy. This article focuses on how all these changes could directly impact the future sleep technologist.

Sleep technologists are a valuable part of the sleep science community. They work to educate, evaluate and treat sleep disorder patients of all ages, and are specially trained to identify polysomnographic services that are safe, aseptic, preventive and restorative.

This article is part three in a four-part series on the ever-changing face of sleep technology. In this article, we’ll address the following questions: What does the future of sleep medicine look like? How will evolving technology change the way sleep studies are done? And, just as importantly, how will economic pressures affect sleep medicine?

Sleep technologists have an important and wide-ranging job. They care for patients with sleep disorders, which can encompass comprehensive evaluation and treatment of sleep disorders, including in-center polysomnographic testing and out-of-center sleep testing; diagnostic and therapeutic interventions; comprehensive patient care; and direct patient education.

Every sleep professional knows that getting the right equipment (and getting it to work right) is crucial for any patient. Sometimes the companies that make durable medical equipment (or DMEs) are extremely helpful when working with patients, while others are not. We asked some of our members to explain their relationship working with DMEs, for better or for worse.

Sleep spindles are an information processing and transferring feature of the sleeping brain. With that in mind, AAST gathered together leading sleep-care professionals to discuss hot topics in the field — transferring information from them to you. AAST board member Allen Boone, RPSGT, RST, CCRA, CCRC, hosts this four-part video series. In our second installment, we have an interview with fellow board members Julie DeWitte, RST, RPSGT, RCP, and Laree J. Fordyce, RST, RPSGT, CCSH, on the topic of why CPAP adherence is so critical.

Jessica Schmidt, RPSGT, CCSH, FACHE, is presenting the breakout session "The Field of Sleep Medicine in the Context of the American Healthcare Landscape” at the AAST 2018 Annual Meeting, Sept. 28-30, 2018, in Indianapolis. We caught up with Schmidt to discuss her background and the future of sleep medicine.