DARIEN, IL – The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) boldly declared last week that public health and safety is being threatened by the increasing prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea, which now afflicts at least 25 million adults in the U.S.
The latest numbers come courtesy of the National Healthy Sleep Awareness Project, an initiative of the AASM. Several new studies highlight the destructive nature of obstructive sleep apnea, a chronic disease that increases the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, stroke and depression.
“Obstructive sleep apnea is destroying the health of millions of Americans, and the problem has only gotten worse over the last two decades,” said Timothy Morgenthaler, MD, president of the AASM, and a national spokesperson for the Healthy Sleep Project. “The effective treatment of sleep apnea is one of the keys to success as our nation attempts to reduce health care spending and improve chronic disease management.”
Findings from new studies emphasize the negative effects of sleep apnea on brain and heart health; however, these health risks can be reduced through the effective treatment of sleep apnea with CPAP.
A sampling of recent studies that document the effects of sleep disordered breathing include:
• A neuroimaging study in the Sept issue of the Sleep found that participants with severe, untreated sleep apnea had a significant reduction in white matter fiber integrity in multiple brain areas, which was accompanied by impairments to cognition, mood and daytime alertness. One year of CPAP therapy led to an almost complete reversal of brain damage.
• A study published online ahead of print Sept. 21 in the journal NeuroImage found functional and anatomical changes in brainstem regions of people with sleep apnea.
• A study in the October issue of Anesthesiology shows that diagnosing sleep apnea and prescribing CPAP therapy prior to surgery significantly reduced postoperative cardiovascular complications — specifically cardiac arrest and shock — by more than half.
• A study published online ahead of print Sept. 19 in the Journal of Hypertension found a favorable reduction of blood pressure with CPAP treatment in patients with resistant hypertension and sleep apnea.
• A Brazilian population study found that nocturnal cardiac arrhythmias occurred in 92 percent of patients with severe sleep apnea, compared with 53 percent of people without sleep apnea. The prevalence of rhythm disturbance also increased with sleep apnea severity.
The massive interest in sleep (from academics, providers, and the consumer press) is reflected in the exhibitor list at Medtrade Spring, which includes the following sleep/sleep accessory companies:
3B/BMC – Booth #1311
AG Industries – Booth #2054
Apex Medical Corp – Booth #2148
Battery Power Solutions – Booth #1429
Beaumont Products Inc – Booth #2557
Better Rest Solutions – Booth #2561
Breathe LLC – Booth #1257
Better Rest Solutions – Booth #2561
Breathe LLC – Booth #1257
Contour Products LLC – Booth #1025
CPAP Holders – Booth #2168
Curative Medical Inc – Booth #2656
DeVilbilss Healthcare – Booth #1827
Drive Medical – Booth #1617
Eastex Products Inc – Booth #2360
Fisher & Paykel Healthcare – Booth #1644
Glenn Medical Systems – Booth #1029
Hudson Medical – Booth #1836
Human Design Medical – Booth #1936
Inventory Solutions – Booth #1237
Linak US – Booth #1852
Maxtec – Booth #2256
Nonin Medical Inc – Booth #1212
Philips Respironics – Booth #1711
PPM Fulfillment – Booth #2563
RemZzzs – Booth #1756
ResMed – Booth #1317
Reverie – Booth #2671
Revsuppliance – Booth #2369
Roscoe Medical – Booth #1516
Salter Labs – Booth #828
SlumberBumps LLC – Booth #1671
Sunset Healthcare Solutions – Booth #1833
Verus Healthcare Solutions – Booth #2464
Virtuox – Booth #2055
• Providers who wish to register for Medtrade should CLICK HERE.
• The full link for registration is http://registration.experientevent.com/showmth141/default.aspx?flowcode=att
• Pricing for events can be found at https://medtrade.com/attendee/pricing.shtml
• All sessions at Medtrade and their descriptions can be found here: https://medtrade.com/conference/conference-sessions.shtml
Exhibitors have already bought 99% of the floor space at the Georgia World Congress Center in anticipation of what could be the most important Medtrade in the event’s long history.
For a complete list of exhibitors and/or additional information about the show, visit medtrade.com.