The Future of Home Sleep Apnea Test (HSAT)
ď‚— Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common condition, with
multiple potential neurocognitive, cardiovascular, and metabolic consequences. Efficacious treatment is available, and the diagnosis procedure and its availability keep improving.Â
ď‚— The use of home sleep apnea test (HSAT), also known as
portable monitoring (PM), for the diagnosis of OSA is continuing to grow as a viable option for sleep professionals. Current available HSAT devices are user-friendly, easily portable, and most importantly- reliable.Â
ď‚— Numerous randomized studies comparing ambulatory and
laboratory-based approaches have generally found HSAT noninferior to a laboratory approach in adults with OSA, especially in patients with a high likelihood of moderatesevere disease. Consequently, HSAT is growing to be the goto approach for patients with high likelihood for OSA without other significant medical conditions.
ď‚— Home sleep apnea test is a favorable approach also due to the
convenience it offers. HSAT allow patients to avoid the overnight stay at the sleep center, with fewer attached wires and access to the comforts of home. HSAT also provide more access to the testing; Sleep centers may not be accessible due to location or even scheduling.Â
Home testing devices can be sent home from the doctor’s
office, and thus offer a quicker diagnostic turn-around time. Moreover, since In-lab testing requires paying for space, technicians, and scoring, HSAT is typically more costefficient for both the patients and the healthcare system.
ď‚— In the future, HSAT might be the dominant approach to
diagnosing and monitoring patients regularly, easily, and economically. Therefor it is crucial for the ambulatory devices to optimally account for all the mentioned limitations.
ď‚— WatchPAT is an easy to use, effective and accurate HSAT
device for OSA diagnosis. To date, WatchPAT with its innovative peripheral arterial tone (PAT) signal is the only FDA-approved HSAT device that measures true sleep time, all sleep stages (wake/arousal, light sleep, deep sleep, and REM sleep) and body position without the use of EEG.