The National Sleep Foundation is pleased to announce its partnership with LARK, creator of the award-winning sleep monitor, silent alarm clock, and personal sleep coach, to educate consumers on the importance of sleep and the best practices for sleep health.

“We’re excited by the potential of the convergence of technology and interest in sleep,” says David Cloud, CEO of the National Sleep Foundation. “LARK is at the cutting edge of consumer sleep devices and by working together, the National Sleep Foundation and LARK can help everyone understand how to make the most of their time in bed.”

LARK worked with top sleep experts to design an actigraph wristband that detects wearers’ unique sleep patterns and wirelessly uploads them to their iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Users get an immediate picture of how they’ve slept and analysis shows what “Sleep Type” they are and the easiest ways for them personally to improve. LARK offers a premium subscription, LARK Pro, which actively coaches people towards improving their sleep. The LARK wristband also features a silent alarm that wakes the wearer gently by mild vibrations. Read the rest of this entry

If you’re suffering from sleep apnea and if you are also a habitual snorer a robotic polar bear pillow might be something worth checking out. It has been named as “Jukusui-kun”, and was developed by Wasaeda University’s Kabe Lab in Japan.

The major objective of developing this robotic polar bear pillow is to help those who suffer from sleep apnea and heavy snoring by gently tickling the user’s face.

By tickling the user’s face, this would cause the user to roll onto their side while remaining in a state of deep sleep, or so it has been reported. Rolling onto your side while sleeping has been said to help reduce snoring, so while some of us find it hard to actively sleep on our sides during a deep state of sleep, this is where Jukusui-kun comes in. Read the rest of this entry

The perfect pillow is the pillow that suits you best’ is the new launch statement for an Australian company that has a developed a unique way of selecting the perfect pillow. No longer is it a guess as to which pillow suits you perfectly and they guarantee it 100%.

Sleeping problems are now recognised as one of the greatest health issue  facing us today with the rise in snoring, sleep apnea and insomnia increasing at an alarming rate. Sleeping is often taken for granted until it no longer happens and an Australian company is doing its part in helping people develop a comfortable sleeping pattern.

Pillows Made to Measure is a company that specialises in pillows and was founded by Dr Andrew Macfarlane D.C, D.O. a Chiropractor and Osteopath with over thirty years of clinical experience dealing with patient’s trying to find the perfect pillow. Read the rest of this entry

Transcend, the new wearable sleep apnea therapy device designed by Somnetics International Inc. to be the ultimate travel CPAP, now measures apnea-hypopnea index (AHI). While AHI measurement is not new to CPAPs, it is a new standard feature on Transcend thereby giving users added value at no additional cost.

Used to assess the severity of a patient’s sleep apnea, AHI is a numerical measure that accounts for the number of pauses in breathing per hour of sleep. Leak detection helps assess the appropriateness of the mask used by the patient. In measuring AHI and leak detection, Transcend also helps assess the efficacy of the patient’s pressure setting. Valuable to both patients and doctors, this information can be used to identify issues with the therapy and to determine how changes to the system setup affects overall treatment. Read the rest of this entry

SleepApneaDisorder/[ Press Release ]/ Minneapolis, USA/  – SLEEP 2011 will bring current research and clinical practices to the forefront for sleep specialists from around the world this week at the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, LLC annual meeting. And Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHI) will demonstrate the latest advances in sleep with the premiere of “Pathway to Compliance.” The interactive showcase features the latest breakthroughs for diagnosing, treating and managing the entire spectrum of sleep-disordered breathing patients and guides them on their journey to better sleep. “Tremendous strides have been made to deepen our understanding of sleep,” says John Frank, Sr. Vice President, General Manager, Sleep and Respiratory Care, Philips Home Healthcare Solutions. “There is growing evidence of co-morbidities such as diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease. As allies in better sleep and breathing, we are committed to meeting these challenges with intelligent solutions. With “Pathway to Compliance,” we will show how new advances are making the future of sleep and therapy compliance a reality for patients and clinicians.” Read the rest of this entry

Inspire™ Upper Airway Stimulation (UAS) therapy is designed to significantly reduce the burden of obstructive sleep apnea by delivering mild stimulation to the upper airway during sleep.

Inspire therapy is a small, fully implantable system that utilizes well-established technologies from the fields of cardiac pacing and neurostimulation. Inspire therapy is currently available only through clinical trials at select medical centers in the United States and Europe.

The airway is dynamic structure…obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a dynamic condition…Inspire therapy is a dynamic therapy that works with the body’s physiology to prevent airway obstruction. Read the rest of this entry

Stop snoring pillows are considered by many as an effective way to relieve snoring. It may sound untrue and impossible but the fact is, many people find a sort of relief and comfort with the use of stop snoring pillows.

Stop Snoring Pillows work by aligning our spine, head and neck in order to alleviate the possibility of obstructing the airway. By this idea, snoring can be lessened and avoided but only for short term.[ Read Complete Post ... ]

Based on its recent analysis of the neurostimulation for sleep apnea market, Frost & Sullivan recognizes ImThera Medical, Inc. with the 2011 North American Frost & Sullivan Award for Technology Innovation for its pioneering sleep apnea device, the aura6000™.

Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment, the gold standard for treating obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), has poor patient compliance due to the inconvenience involved. ImThera is one of the few companies to have devised a neurostimulation device for treating OSA that targets CPAP non-compliant patients worldwide (at least 46 percent of patients according to market data) and can also be used for others as a second line of therapy for OSA. Read the rest of this entry

SleepApneaDisorder/[ Press Release ]/ DALLAS, TX – /  Attorneys for The Snoring Center, the nationally renowned Dallas-based clinic for the treatment of snoring and sleep apnea, are noting that the Sereno Center for Snoring Solutions in San Francisco is no longer claiming to be the world’s largest provider of the Pillar Procedure or the first practice of its kind. Sereno also has altered its website and advertisements to remove claims of being the world’s first exclusive provider of clinical treatments for snoring, sleep apnea and related disorders.

The Snoring Center filed a federal lawsuit against Sereno in November 2010 based on allegations that the company’s owners fraudulently obtained The Snoring Center’s proprietary information and made false advertising statements to promote its clinical practice. Read the rest of this entry

Watermark Medical, Boca Raton, Fla, is launching WM SleepCare, a comprehensive sleep  benefits management program. The Web-based program offers insurance  providers and self-insured employer groups an “end-to-end” program to  manage patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) that includes  utilization oversight and compliance management.

“The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) made it  possible for insurance providers to offer home sleep testing. We quickly  recognized the opportunity to build a sleep benefits management program  with tight controls and utilization oversight, something the insurance  industry is rapidly embracing,” said Sean Heyniger, chief executive  officer of Watermark Medical.

According to Watermark Medical, the system utilizes the company’s  cloud-based platform that improves workflow, integrates therapy  alternatives, and reduces the cost of health care delivery.

“We are transforming the entire industry to a more streamlined and  cost-effective solution, while improving patient care,” said Charlie  Alvarez, president of Watermark Medical.

Philips Respironics is introducing its first sleep therapy mask built especially for male patients, GoLife for Men.  In the near future, Philips Respironics will release its GoLife for Women mask, which will offer the same customized features designed for a female patient’s face. 

Philips Respironics GoLife for Men nasal pillows mask is used in the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).  The product is the company’s first sleep therapy mask built exclusively for men.

Designed to be the most stable nasal pillows mask available, GoLife for Men has facial contour arms that conform to and hug the patient’s face to maintain a secure seal and stability, even when moving during sleep.  The mask features straightforward, preformed headgear and self-adjusting, optimally angled nasal pillows for a one-step fit.

“When designing GoLife for Men, we listened to what sleep therapy providers, clinicians, and male patients told us they wanted in a nasal pillows mask,” said Maura Weis, director, Sleep Marketing, North America, Philips Home Healthcare Solutions.  “As a result, it is engineered for stability, designed for simplicity, and built for men.  GoLife for Men takes the complexity out of achieving successful nasal pillows therapy for male patients.  In the near future, we will release our GoLife for Women mask, which will offer the same customized features designed for a female patient’s face.”

GoLife has few parts, comes in a FitPack with all sizes (petite, small, medium, and large), and is easy to size and fit.  Used together with Philips Respironics System One Resistance Control, the mask helps to deliver optimum PAP therapy and comfort.

Sleep disorders are becoming more and more common every year. In fact, there are millions of Americans who have at least one of these disorders. The most frequent sleep disorders are insomnia and snoring; however, the most dangerous disorder is sleep apnea. Sleep apnea occurs when a person stops breathing during the night for lapses of one minute. 

There are three kinds of sleep apnea: obstructive sleep apnea, central sleep apnea and mixed sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when there is an obstruction of the airway passages of your body. On the other hand, Central sleep apnea means that the airway passages are not blocked; instead, the brain is not able to properly control the muscles involved in breathing. Finally, mixed sleep apnea is a case when the two mentioned cases are combined.  Read the rest of this entry

SleepApneaDisorder/ [ Press Release ]/ –Have you ever had the pleasure of sleeping, or trying to sleep, next to your spouse or loved one who pushes the decibels into the upper ranges with his or her snoring problem? If so, you will understand the need those who suffer from snoring and sleep apnea have for effective and economical remedies to help them with this terrible condition. That is why the developers of the new website, MouthGuardforSnoring.com, have striven to include some of the best information on the mouth guard for snoring, sleep apnea mouthpiece, jaw supporter for snoring and some of the other best snoring aids available on the market.MouthGuardforSnoring.com is focused primarily on the wide range of inexpensive snoring aids available rather than the more invasive and expensive methods. It is an informational site with links and photos to some of the best snoring aids, but does not offer any specific medical advice, as this is a task best suited to individuals’ personal physicians. However, it is no secret that most folks, when faced with a terrible snoring problem, would look first online to find information. Based on this information, they may purchase some of the inexpensive snoring remedies in hopes of solving their problem permanently, without having to take more drastic steps. Read the rest of this entry

SleepApneaDisorder/[Press Release]/MINNEAPOLIS, Jan. 19, 2011 /Nonin Medical, Inc., the inventor of fingertip pulse oximetry and an innovator of noninvasive physiological monitoring solutions, today announced the United States and Canadian launches of its WristOx2™, Model 3150 wrist-worn pulse oximeter.

The WristOx2, Model 3150 is a compact, wireless wrist-worn monitoring device that accurately monitors blood-oxygen saturation (SpO2) levels and pulse rate in patients undergoing ambulatory monitoring to screen for breathing disorders such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea. Engineered with Nonin’s PureSAT® SpO2 technology, the WristOx2, Model 3150 is proven clinically accurate in the widest range of clinical settings and challenging patient conditions such as motion and low perfusion. Featuring Bluetooth® wireless technology, a new ergonomic design and larger screen size, the WristOx2, Model 3150 is designed to increase patient comfort and ease of use. Read the rest of this entry