February 2008

Happy National Sleep Awareness Week!
March 3-9

Share Your National Sleep Awareness Week Activities
The nation will once again be learning more about sleep during National Sleep Awareness Week, coming up March 3-9. The section encourages everyone to get out in their communities to mark the occasion and help educate the public about the role respiratory therapists play in sleep. And if you do conduct an event to celebrate, please consider sharing a brief summary of your activities with all of us. E-mail your summaries — and a photo or two as well — to Section Chair Karen Allen and we’ll publish them in the Spring issue of our Bulletin.

The National Sleep Foundation has lots of great ideas on ways to celebrate the week and we do, too, of course. See what we've posted on our website, including a piece on Daylight Savings Time by Chair Karen Allen.

Section Bulletin Online Now
The Winter edition of the Bulletin is on the SECTION WEB SITE and ready for viewing. Check it out for great articles on:

• Section goals
• Our new section chair
• 2007 Specialty Practitioner of the Year

Explaining Sleep
New research out of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health is helping explain why people sleep. The investigation, which was conducted in rats, shows nerve connections central to brain plasticity become increasingly stronger during wakefulness and weaker following sleep. The experiments help reinforce the idea that brain circuits eventually become overloaded during wakefulness. Sleep is necessary to recalibrate the circuits so future learning can take place. The study was published in the Jan. 20 online edition of Nature Neuroscience. READ ARTICLE

Seven Strategies
The federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has issued a new mathematical simulation encompassing seven different strategies for obstructive sleep apnea diagnosis and titration of CPAP. The report is expected to assist clinicians as they reconsider diagnostic techniques following the release of the National Coverage Analysis on home testing by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
READ REPORT

California Senator Introduces Licensure Bill
The California senate is considering a new bill aimed at protecting sleep patients and ensuring a standard of training in the field, reports Sleep Review. Sen. Jeff Denham introduced the licensure legislation in response to several incidents involving a sleep technician who was arrested and charged with inappropriately touching patients during sleep testing. Among other things, the legislation would require background checks for sleep personnel. READ ARTICLE

Home Care Competitive Bidding May Impact Sleep Centers Too
The government’s home care competitive bidding program will soon be expanded to include 80 of the largest metropolitan statistical areas in the country (up from 10 today). According to a recent article, sleep centers that send CPAP prescriptions for their Medicare patients to outside DME providers are likely to feel the impact, because the program may restrict the number of providers they can use. READ ARTICLE to learn which communities will be affected.

SDB Increases Risk for Cognitive Impairment in Older Women
Sleep disordered breathing (SDB) was identified as a risk factor for cognitive impairment in women in a study published in the January issue of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. The research involved 448 women with a mean age of 82 who completed standard mental exams and polysomnography. A subgroup of 242 women also underwent testing for the APOE 4 allele. SDB increased the likelihood of cognitive impairment across the board, but the finding was strongest for women who also carried APOE 4. READ ABSTRACT

Cells Phones and Sleep