Lab vs Home Testing
Years ago, we tested patients exclusively in free standing labs. In fact, we had more labs around the country than anyone else. However, as times changed and technology improved we began testing in patients’ homes as well. Our first HSTs arrived in a large van and were run by a technologist who would spend the night in the patient’s home. Today, the units are easy to use and provide better results than even the in-lab equipment did previously.
Here are a few of the reasons we choose to use in home testing over labs:
- Compliance—Availability
Tonight, would you rather sleep in your own bed, or in some unfamiliar laboratory with a technician watching you from the next room?
It’s no surprise that the vast majority of people choose their own bed. By offering unattended sleep testing in the patient’s own home the study acceptance rate skyrockets compared to testing in a sleep lab or hospital. Many patients can’t leave children alone at night, are uncomfortable with the thought of being watched while they sleep, or simply can’t get their schedule to match up with the sleep lab. Our unattended home testing offers complete scheduling flexibility for the patient.
- Efficacy—Multi Night
Why would we want to test a patient’s sleep in a place that they’ll never sleep again?
Patients spend the majority of nights in their own bed. Ideally, the test would be done with the minimum amount of variance from the patient’s normal routine as possible. In fact, the “first night effect” that comes with sleeping in an unfamiliar environment, is known to skew test results with increased stage 1 time and an elevated arousal index. In home testing minimizes the “first night effect” since the patient is in their own bed. In addition, our multiple night testing further minimizes the “first night effect” and produces more accurate and relevant results due to the fact that sleep disorder severity commonly fluctuates from one night to the next.
- Price
Whether we like it or not, many patients, doctors, and certainly insurance companies take price into account when determining whether or not a test is worth doing. Many insurance companies are now denying coverage for in lab studies and relying on home sleep testing to provide the data needed to diagnose a sleep disorder or prove that an in lab study will be medically necessary. Most importantly, a patient’s out of pocket cost is generally much less for in home testing than a lab based test.