New Testing Technology for Sleep Apnea

A new software algorithm uses a form of artificial intelligence, a neural network, to detect obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and Cheyne-Stokes respiration (CSR), along with a pulse oximetry signal.

The technology is based on the analysis of the oximetric recordings of 213 sleep studies. The software has demonstrated very high sensitivities and specificities for diagnosing OSA and CSR. The technology was developed at the University of Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences (UB, NY, USA). OSA affects 18 million people in the United States alone, with as many as 90% going undiagnosed.

The University of Buffalo has signed an agreement with Sleep Solutions, Inc. (Annapolis, MD, USA) to commercialize and distribute the new testing technology. Sleep Solutions provides technology and testing services for at-home diagnosis, therapy, and care of sleep-disordered breathing, particularly OSA.

According to Robert J. Genco, UB interim vice president for research and director of the UB Office of Science, there is "a growing worldwide clinical need to provide a cost-effective solution for diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea and Cheyne-Stokes respiration. We are very confident that Sleep Solutions will be able to bring this novel technology to the marketplace resulting in a lower-costing, easier-to-implement diagnostic tool for the public good.”




Related Links:
Univ. Buffalo
Sleep Solutions, Inc.