Talking Sleep

A new clinical practice guideline from the AASM advises when surgical consultation may be appropriate for patients struggling to use CPAP to treat their obstructive sleep apnea. In this episode, we talk with two of the guideline authors, Drs. David Kent and Jeff Stanley, both otolaryngologists and sleep specialists, about the recommendations for surgical consultation and how they can empower patients to make the best decision for their care.

Are you overwhelmed by the constantly changing landscape of sleep technologies? Having trouble keeping up with your patient’s latest sleep tracker? The AASM Emerging Technology Committee is here to help. In this episode, we talk with committee members Drs. Maryann Deak, Sharon Schutte-Rodin and Ambrose Chiang about AASM resources to evaluate sleep-related clinical and consumer devices to help further your understanding of #SleepTechnology.

In this episode, we talk with Dr. Scott Kutscher, sleep fellowship director at Stanford and a member of the AASM’s Sleep Medicine Fellowship Directors Council Steering Committee. He discusses the Choose Sleep initiative to increase the knowledge and awareness of a career in sleep medicine, how sleep fellowship programs have responded and adapted to the pandemic, and a move for sleep medicine’s Match Day.

A clinical sleep health educator can help bridge the gaps between patients and providers, leading to improved diagnosis and treatment of sleep disorders and better coordination among the health care team. In today’s episode, we’ll learn about the Certification in Clinical Sleep Health credential with Andrea Ramberg, RPSGT, CCSH, president-elect of the Board of Registered Polysomnographic Technologists.

The AASM’s inaugural Change Agents competition brought together teams from all areas of sleep medicine to think about innovative and creative ways to reimagine the diagnosis and treatment of obstructive sleep apnea. In today’s episode, we talk to the leader of the winning team, Dr. Amy Bender, about the proposal, “Let’s Put the Sleep Back into Sleep Medicine,” which recommends measuring sleep depth to predict CPAP adherence and offer more personalized sleep apnea treatment.

With increased use of telemedicine, how reliable are video evaluations for obstructive sleep apnea? Today’s guest, Dr. Michael Yurcheshen, recently published a study in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine comparing telemedicine to in-person assessments for sleep-disordered breathing. He discusses his findings, shares tips on how to conduct the best video exam and explores how telemedicine can be leveraged in the future.

In this episode, we review the recently released AASM clinical practice guideline for treatment of central disorders of hypersomnolence. We talk with Dr. Kiran Maski, chair of the AASM task force that developed the guideline, about the data-driven treatment recommendations as well as future research directions, the challenges of diagnosing hypersomnias, and the potential of sleep biomarkers.

Sleep medicine is a diverse profession, and the AASM strives to be representative and inclusive of all backgrounds and perspectives. In this episode, we talk with Dr. Andrew Spector, chair of the AASM’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee, about the Academy’s efforts to identify and eliminate barriers to inclusion, support initiatives for better diversity, and work to reduce health care disparities.

In this episode, we review the CPAP technology assessment draft report released by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the AASM-led response. Our guest Dr. Susheel Patil highlights key findings of the report, where the Academy and its partners think it falls short, and how it could ultimately move the field forward by setting the stage for future research priorities.

Obstructive sleep apnea affects 40-50% of children with Down syndrome; however, access to care, diagnosis, and treatment of OSA presents many challenges. In this episode, we talk with Dr. Ignacio Tapia, a pediatric sleep specialist whose research aims to increase access to sleep care for special needs’ patients, leverage home sleep apnea tests and improve PAP adherence through programs benefiting patients and their families.