Global Product Manager
Respironics
Murrysville, PA
EASY TO USE SCREENING TOOL IDENTIFYING POTENTIAL OSA
The RUSleeping™ RTS serves two purposes for us. It meets our need for an objective screening tool to help clinicians identify potential OSA patients, and it provides a tool that is very easy for clinicians and patients to use.
A main feature is the ability of the device to provide real-time scoring. The window area of the device displays the total number of nightly apneic events and, with the touch of a button, displays the average hourly number of apneic events. There is no need for software or downloads.
The device is also very easy to use. The patient inserts the battery, connects the nasal cannula and goes to sleep. In the morning the patient reads the display and calls the physician’s office with the results. After the physician is satisfied that there is no need for a retest, the patient can hand deliver or mail the device to the physician’s office. It does not get any easier.
COMMUNICATING OBJECTIVE DATA EASILY WITH NO DELAYS
The feedback process between the patient and physician is very easy. In the morning the patient just calls in the overnight results (shown on the device display window) to the physician’s office. If the scores indicate the need for diagnostic testing, the physician now has objective data that can serve to motivate the patient to seek the appropriate diagnosis and treatment pathway.
Another benefit is that, unlike some other screening devices, there are no delays (in result reporting) to deal with. If the physician feels a retest is necessary, it can be done that night.
Offering this easy screening tool can help to increase the awareness of OSA among the general population and help physicians easily and efficiently identify potential OSA candidates among their general patient population. The ideal result is better patient outcomes achieved by bringing patients one step closer to diagnosis and therapy.
A COMPLEMENT TO ORAL APPLIANCES
As a global leader in providing solutions to the sleep and respiratory market, Respironics has now expanded the continuum of care to include screening as a first step in getting patients on the proper pathway to diagnosis and treatment. We have provided an easy-to-use objective tool to complement existing subjective screening methods. The data from the RUSleeping RTS can help physicians move patients on to the next important step (diagnostic testing) in identifying OSA. That in turn can lead to diagnosis, followed by appropriate treatment. This easy-to-use device can help physicians make a difference in the quality of life for their patients.
The RUSleeping RTS also complements our new oral appliance, the SnoreSilencer‘ Pro, which is designed to treat snoring and mild to moderate OSA. These two products are complementary in that the RUSleeping RTS can be used by a dentist to evaluate the effectiveness of a patient’s jaw advancement throughout oral appliance therapy. It offers the dentist the opportunity to titrate and assess patients on the SnoreSilencer Pro, or any oral appliance, prior to sending a patient back to a sleep lab where the patient will undergo a sleep study for validation of treatment.