All About Sleep

• By Elisha Bury
• Jun 01, 2009

Welcome to Respiratory Management's first Special Sleep Issue! Last year, we made a promise to give our readers more on sleep. The culmination of that promise is our June issue, which takes an in-depth look at matters close to the sleep industry's heart.

In an exclusive survey on the sleep market, RM asked providers and respiratory therapists to tell us about their sleep business, client base and product choices. The poll showed that a lot of providers and respiratory therapists are having trouble with Medicare's new PAP requirements. Specifically, respondents said they are having a tough time getting patients to use the CPAP device for the required time. One reader commented that, "CMS needs to realize that even though four hours usage per night seems reasonable, that not all patients are able to abide by those rules. Some patients are not able to sleep that long due to other factors and will use their PAPs for three hours here and two hours there throughout the night but not in a solid four-hour sequence."

Given that feedback, it's fitting that RM takes a look at how providers are coping with the new PAP LCD. Industry experts and providers share stories about obstacles encountered with the new compliance regulation, including getting physicians and patients on board for the face-to-face follow-up visit and strategies for success. A product spotlight also provides an overview of new technologies to help track CPAP usage.

Special coverage for sleep respiratory therapists includes an article that sheds light on the connection between sleep apnea and the heart. RTs already know that there's a relationship between OSA and cardiac disease, but RM delves deeper to find out just what happens to the heart when a patient doesn't get proper sleep. We've even provided an illustration. The article touches on Cheyne-Stokes respiration, compliance issues and CPAP's role in reversing the effects of OSA on the heart. Plus, a patient tells his personal story of OSA diagnosis and using CPAP.

This issue is also packed with several other sleep tidbits. Be sure to check out News for highlights of the upcoming APSS SLEEP 2009 show in Seattle this month, Kelly Riley's Funding Focus column on compliance, Respiratory Factor for stats on OSA and truck drivers, and our auto CPAP product marketplace. What are your thoughts on the HME sleep business?

This article originally appeared in the Respiratory Management June 2009 issue of HME Business.