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As the market changes it is rapidly becoming important to offer flexible solutions for collecting sleep studies at varied locations. With the entrance of Wireless Polysomnography, sleep study setups outside of the lab become more feasible. A comprehensive sleep diagnostic service can now come to the patient instead of the patient having to come to the lab for a PSG. Wireless PSG also brings several benefits to the traditional in-lab setting. Here’s a quick introduction to the traditional and new & upcoming, non-traditional settings for a polysomnography.

Traditional Setting:

In-lab sleep facilities offer onsite sleep techs, medical equipment, and a full bedroom set. This is an expensive set-up, but wireless PSG completely eliminates the cost of running cables throughout the facility with its ability to transmit data through multiple walls. Also, there are typically fewer components with wireless devices and lower risk of individual component failure. Sleep labs will also benefit from expanding their sleep services to include non-traditional off-site testing. Sleep labs volume will not diminish but their patient mix will differ. Typically overcrowded labs will only have deal with those who strictly require in-lab testing, and they can service a larger total volume of patients (since they do not all need to be onsite). Each patient population can then receive a faster diagnosis and therefore faster treatment initiation, cutting out the need for long waits or investing in additional beds for the lab.

Non Traditional Settings:

Home Sleep Test: While some extreme conditions strictly require in-lab sleep testing, many patient populations are well suited for home sleep diagnostic testing, like those tested for occupational reasons, or the home-bound suffering from chronic pain. Home Sleep Testing (HST) allows patients the comfort of home and a familiar environment. It is also increases affordability by cutting out the facility costs of the sleep lab, and the costs involved in moving a patient to the sleep lab which can be expensive in some cases.

Hospital Inpatient PSG: Hospital networks, wireless or intranets are used to transfer sleep studies from the bedside to the sleep lab. Technicians can monitor and respond to problems, yet the patient is still under the immediate supervision of skilled nurses. Since Sleep Disorders Breathing is a complicating factor in many surgeries, the ability to conveniently conduct a sleep study in those settings may avoid complications intraoperatively and postoperatively (particularly for bariatric and cardiac surgery patients)

Hotels: Sometimes sleep labs use hotel rooms to conduct sleep studies because of reduced costs. Some patients are better able to relax in this more familiar setting, and benefit from a reduced first-night-effect.

CleveMed offers the technologies that can expand the reach of sleep services with its wireless systems that are suitable for both HST, follow-up and in-lab sleep studies. This post draws on the experience of several experts at CleveMed and the following web page: www.clevemed.com/PSGAnywhere