NovaSom Announces Sleep Apnea Testing Program for Anesthesiologists
NovaSom, Inc., the leader in home sleep testing and cost-saving solutions for Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) management, has announced the launch of AccuSom Safe Recovery™. The full-service testing program is designed to enable anesthesiologists to quickly and efficiently diagnose OSA pre-operatively and develop a patient management plan that minimizes the risk of adverse respiratory events and other associated complications during and after surgery.
AccuSom Safe Recovery leverages the AccuSom® home sleep test, the only FDA-approved wireless home sleep testing device, to facilitate testing and diagnosis of OSA, a sleep-related breathing disorder, within days. Designed to meet the guidelines of the American Society of Anesthesiologists for screening and diagnosis of patients prior to anesthesia, it addresses the real-world challenge of tight pre-operative timelines. With AccuSom Safe Recovery, anesthesiologists can order a home sleep test and receive an accurate interpretation performed by an American Academy of Sleep Medicine board certified specialist within 72 hours, enabling a customized anesthesia plan.
Richard Hassett, MD, CEO, NovaSom, said, “OSA is associated with a host of cardiovascular and respiratory health risks that can be intensified by anesthesia, making it critical to identify OSA in patients scheduled for surgery. AccuSom Safe Recovery has the potential to significantly improve patient care, enabling anesthesiologists to minimize risk during surgery and recovery while streamlining the planning process for the surgical team.”
For Risk Managers in the hospital setting, the benefits of AccuSom Safe Recovery include the reduction of risk associated with in-facility procedures on high risk patients, while easing the burden of compliance on surgeons and anesthesiologists and maximizing facility efficiency.
Michael Coppola, MD, chief medical officer, NovaSom, said, “Guidelines from the American Society of Anesthesiologists recommend routine pre-operative screening and diagnosis of OSA to allow anesthesiologists to make informed decisions regarding anesthesia technique, airway management and patient monitoring during and following surgery, and with at least 6 percent of Americans suffering from OSA, our program can help them achieve those goals.”
With AccuSom Safe Recovery, anesthesiologists can order the AccuSom home sleep test through NovaSom’s cloud-based MediTrack® portal and have the test delivered to the patient’s home the next day. Each morning the patient data is wirelessly transmitted via the Verizon Network to NovaSom’s MediTrack platform for same-day analysis and interpretation by an American Academy of Sleep Medicine board certified sleep specialist. The diagnostic report is then immediately accessible to the prescribing anesthesiologist.
NovaSom’s sleep testing technology directly measures the parameters recommended by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine to diagnose OSA, and has been proven clinically equivalent to traditional in-facility polysomnography in two peer-reviewed publications.
Anesthesiologists can begin ordering the AccuSom Safe Recovery test on November 1, 2012.
About OSA
Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) affects 40 million Americans, of which 18 million have moderate to severe disease. Of these, a startling 85% of sufferers are undiagnosed and therefore untreated, generating significant medical expense for patients and the healthcare system. Nearly half of all OSA patients also suffer from one or more serious health conditions such as diabetes, hypertension or heart failure that are either aggravated or caused by OSA. Treating OSA reduces medical expenses, improves patient quality of life and lowers associated health risks.
About NovaSom, Inc.
NovaSom, Inc. is the market leader in Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) home testing, with the AccuSom® Home Sleep Test, the first and only FDA-cleared wireless HST. The NovaSom home sleep testing technology and MediTrack® portal have been shown to provide in-home, clinically equivalent diagnosis of OSA at a significantly reduced cost as compared to in-facility testing for uncomplicated, adult OSA. NovaSom’s home sleep tests are currently covered for more than 165 million U.S. lives, through partnerships with major health insurers.
NovaSom also offers comprehensive service programs that are utilized by payers, employers, primary care and sleep specialist physicians nationwide, that enable significant cost savings for OSA management. In an effort to combat the growing OSA epidemic, NovaSom also partners with sleep centers, enabling sleep specialists to offer clinically appropriate patients an alternative, convenient testing option, expanding access to diagnosis and treatment.
NovaSom is accredited by the Joint Commission as an Ambulatory Care Sleep Diagnostic Center & Telehealth Provider and is approved by CMS as an Independent Diagnostic Testing Facility. For more information, visit www.NovaSom.com.