The number of sleep studies being completed in both the UK and US has seen a massive increase. In the UK alone the number has doubled in just 10 years! A better awareness of the importance of good quality sleep has played a large part in this unexpected rise.
Sleep studies carried out in the UK reach 10 year high
A recent article by David Rhodes on the BBC website reports the number of sleep studies being undertaken in the UK has doubled in the last 10 years. In 2007-2008 69,919 studies were completed. In 2016 147,610 studies were carried out. And this is just within the National Health Service — private sleep studies may inflate the figure even further.
US still out-tests the UK
In the US a similar situation has arisen according to recent research published in the journal Laryngoscope. In 2014, 845,569 sleep studies were completed through Medicare costing a whopping $189 million. This represented an increase of 9.1% in only 4 years. And this is just through Medicare — the full extent of the increase remains unknown as most tests are carried out through private insurance companies.
Sleep apnoea remains the most common diagnosis
Most of the sleep studies carried out result in a diagnosis of sleep apnoea. There has been an explosion in the number of cases worldwide. This is due to:
- The worldwide obesity epidemic — being obese or overweight is a big risk factor
- A growing awareness of the importance of sleep by the general public
- An increased appreciation of the dangers of sleep apnoea by doctors.
And it’s not all just about sleep apnoea; other diagnoses such as insomnia, REM behaviour disorder, restless leg syndrome and narcolepsy are also on the increase.
Can we afford all these extra tests?
It is clear from the US figures the average sleep study doesn’t come cheap! But surprisingly their cost has been rapidly declining. This is mainly due to technological advances that have enabled most sleep studies to be carried out at home rather than in a hospital bed. This saves money on staffing, beds and equipment.
Although there have been huge savings on sleep studies in recent years, the cost of treatment still remains relatively high — a CPAP machine which is used to treat sleep apnoea costs a minimum of £500 in the UK. Add to this the costs of providing masks and accessories, servicing the equipment and employing staff for patient support and you have a pretty big bill.
All this extra cash being spent on diagnosis and treatment suggests the UK and US are committed to dealing with sleep disorders like sleep apnoea despite the overall squeeze on health budgets in both countries. Let’s hope this trend continues.
Are you a sleep specialist or health worker? Have you noticed an increase in patients being referred for sleep studies? If so let us know your experiences in the comments section below.
