The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) is currently working on a focused update of its clinical practice guideline on the Diagnostic Testing for Adult Obstructive Sleep Apnea. This guideline will provide recommendations on new devices and technologies for diagnosing adults with obstructive sleep apnea. This guideline will have an important impact on standardizing physician practice and ensuring that patients get the best quality care. AASM physicians are currently reviewing the scientific literature to update these guidelines; however, they also want to know what you think: What do you ..read more

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) is currently working to update its clinical practice guideline on the Use of Home Sleep Apnea Testing (HSAT) for the diagnosis of Obstructive Sleep Apnea, in Children. This guideline will provide recommendations on when or how to use home sleep apnea testing devices for diagnosing children with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). This guideline will have an important impact on standardizing physician practice and ensuring that patients get the best quality care. AASM physicians are currently reviewing the scientific literature to update these guidelines ..read more

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) is currently working to update its clinical practice guideline on the Treatment of Central Sleep Apnea (CSA). This guideline will provide recommendations for how to treat adults with central sleep apnea. This guideline will have an important impact on standardizing physician practice and ensuring that patients get the best quality care. AASM physicians are currently reviewing the scientific literature to update these guidelines; however, they also want to know what you think: What do you think about the available treatments for CSA? What are your ..read more

New Patient Resources on MyApnea Low awareness about sleep apnea symptoms and/or positive airway pressure (PAP) treatment options can be a barrier to management of sleep apnea. Developing materials that are clear and easy to use is critical for reducing barriers to OSA care. The MyApnea team, in partnership with interdisciplinary stakeholders, including patients, providers, and community members, has just launched a new set of resources that are developed by patients for patients. Our team has worked with sleep apnea patients across the US and asked them what they wanted to know about sleep ap ..read more

Philips Recall – Update for patients As you likely are aware, Philips Respironics issued a voluntary recall of certain sleep and respiratory care products to address potential health risks related to the polyester-based polyurethane (PE-PUR) sound abatement foam in these devices. This news likely was jarring to patients with these devices. There are several updates after the recall that may be useful for you as a patient, particularly if you have or are still using a Philips Respironics device. First, all patients who have been affected by the recall are encouraged to register with Philips. Af ..read more

We wanted to pass along this important letter and request from David Bishop: Hi MyApnea Team, I am writing to you as a sleep apnea patient, a patient advocate, and a board member of the Alliance for Sleep Apnea Partners. I have been invited to participate in a briefing for members of the United States House of Representatives Sleep Health Caucus on September 21, 2021. The briefing will be done in conjunction with the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) on the topic of sleep, COVID-19, and COVID-19 vaccine response. The invitation by AASM is a genuine effort to include a patient perspecti ..read more

Our team recently spoke with patients with sleep apnea across the US and asked them what they wanted to know about sleep apnea and Covid-19. To answer some common questions, we developed a "Living with Sleep Apnea" Fact Sheet on Covid-19. This is a first of a series of helpful tools for patients with sleep apnea. Click below to view and download the Fact Sheet: https://myapnea.org/image/XbyK8n ..read more

Researchers at University of New South Wales (UNSW) are conducting a study about whether a theoretical new treatment system for obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) would be acceptable to people with OSA. This theoretical treatment has two parts – a one-off injection to the tongue that sensitises the tongue muscles to a specific type of light. The patient would then wear a mouthguard device at night that shines light on the tongue activating the muscles and keeping the airway open. Participation in this survey is entirely voluntary. If you are interested, the research project is looking for people w ..read more

Submitted by Susan Redline, MD, MPH. Professor of Sleep Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School As many people are aware, obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes are associated with more severe Covid-19 infections. However, an important question is whether sleep apnea is an unrecognized or hidden risk factor for complications from Covid-19 and whether positive airway pressure (PAP), used to treat sleep apnea, changes this risk. Our team asked this question by analyzing a large database of patients seen at Mass Gen Brigham Health System from the greater Boston area ..read more

Keeping your CPAP machine clean can be a challenge. To help people using CPAP, there are many automated machines that claim to clean or disinfect CPAPs. You may have seen these advertised on TV, or you may even use one! On February 27, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned that "you should think twice before buying a machine that claims to clean or disinfect a CPAP". The FDA specifically warned about CPAP cleaning devices that use ozone or ultraviolet light. This is because the FDA has received complaints from patients who used these products who experienced cough, difficult ..read more