News & Announcements
The AHI Challenge
By: Robyn Woidtke, MSN, RN, RPSGT, CCSH In 2017, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force stated that screening for sleep apnea is not recommended in symptomatic adults, including those with unrecognized symptom[1]. This is an interesting conundrum as many individuals...
The Year 2020, Social Determinants of Health Amplified: Sleep Disparities
By: Robyn Woidtke, MSN, RN, RPSGT, CCSH The country is in the midst of the worst public health crisis most of us have experienced. The health disparities which existed prior to COVID-19 have only been exacerbated by the virus. The National Institutes of Health have...
Taping Your Mouth Closed During Sleep; Is that a Good Idea?
By: William T. Hart, MD Many products are being sold over the counter and are promoted to improve sleep. Recently I have noticed peddling of misinformation and potentially ineffective therapies are common on the internet. One of these is selling mouth tape for...
Light Therapy
By: Patrick Moday, BBA, RPSGT, RST, CCSH “Light is to darkness what love is to fear; in the presence of one, the other disappears.” Marianne Williamson, A Year of Miracles: Daily Devotions and Reflections. Light therapy (aka phototherapy and heliotherapy) is used to...
The Pandemic of Sedentariness
By: Emmanuel During, MD We will all remember the year 2020. A tragic year of confinement, emotional and financial strain across the society and across the globe. It seems that a lot can be said about this, but not much can be done, except for physically distancing,...
Severe Restless Legs Syndrome in the Setting of Iron Deficiency and Chronic Blood Loss
By: Sam A. Kashani, MD Introduction Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS), also known as Willis-Ekbom Disease (WED), is a common sleep-related movement disorder characterized by an uncomfortable sensation in the legs associated with an urge to move the leg that usually...
A Quality Approach in Times of Uncertainty: Taking a Look at the ISO 9001 Framework
By: Robyn Woidtke, RN, RPSGT The status quo is no longer the status quo. I decided not to write about COVID-19 with regards to reopening and other such issues, however, with the crisis, there is also opportunity. Opportunity to re-evaluate current practices...
Sleep and the COVID Pandemic
By: Sam A. Kashani, MD Since the COVID-19 pandemic started in early 2020, we have all been subjected to give up our usual routines and coping skills, such as going to the gym, socializing with friends, and many other activities that constitute our daily life...
It Goes to Show, You Never Can Tell
By: Rafael Pelayo, MD It seems that the news about the Coronavirus pandemic got markedly worse after we lost an hour of sleep due to the daylight-saving shift. Correlations are not causation, but lack of sleep makes us more susceptible to viral infections. So...
The Sleep Tech Paradox
By: Jonathan Sherrill, BA, RST, RPSGT A paradox is any seemingly absurd or self-contradictory statement or proposition that when investigated or explained may prove to be well founded or true. The job of the sleep tech is inherently a paradox, as working overnight...
Guardrails
By: Rafael Pelayo, MD What did Jerry Garcia and Antonin Scalia likely have most in common? How they slept. About a third of their time they shared the same condition millions of others do. Their deaths were related to obstructive sleep apnea. Jerry Garcia did not...
The Occasional Rough Night
By: Sam A. Kashani, MD One of my favorite questions I am frequently asked by people is “what do you recommend I do if I’m just having a bad night?“ More specifically, I often encounter a solid sleeper who doesn’t necessarily have a chronic sleep difficulty but just...
15th Annual Educational Symposium – 2022
In Memoriam: Allan Rechtschaffen, PhD (1927 – 2021)
The California Sleep Society mourns the death of the Allan Rechtschaffen, PhD.
The Patient Treatment Burden of Obstructive Sleep Apnea: Impact on Adherence
By: Robyn Woidtke, MSN, RN, RPSGT, CCSH, FAAST Non-adherence in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a known risk factor which may contribute to worsening of the condition, exacerbate co-morbid or multimorbid conditions or contribute to the development of...
A New Light at the End of the Idiopathic Hypersomnia Tunnel
By: Sam Kashani, MD, FAASM In August 2021, Jazz Pharmaceuticals announced the US FDA approval of Xywav for the treatment of idiopathic hypersomnia in adults. Xywav, an oral solution consisting primarily of oxybate (GHB), already has approval for the treatment of...
Circadian Issues in the Sleep Doctor’s Office
By: Andrew Binder, MD, FAASM, FCCP I love being a sleep doctor. I often introduce myself as a “recovering pulmonary and critical care doctor.” One of the reasons I love being a sleep doctor is that I think it is one of the few things, in my advanced age, at which I...
OSA and Physician’s Role in Weight Loss
By: Said Mostafavi, MD, FCCP, FAASM Like most sleep physicians, treating sleep-disordered breathing constitutes a large percentage of my practice. When it comes to treating obstructive sleep apnea, we thankfully have various treatment options available, some...
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Boston Children’s Hospital Sleep Medicine Fellowship – Pediatric Track
The Center for Pediatric Sleep Disorders at Boston Children's Hospital (BCH) and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) invites applications from candidates interested in training in Pediatric Sleep Medicine for the 2022-2023 academic year. Applications for this...
Philips Respironics Recall of PAP devices
Dear CSS Members: You may be aware of the Phillips recall of certain PAP devices. We understand that this recall has placed a burden on sleep center staff and patients alike. From various sources, the CSS has gathered an array of information regarding the recall and...