Scientists Report Obstructive Sleep Apnea Snoring May Inflate Your Medical Costs Rob Your Retirement Savings, Plus Increase Your Risk of Premature Death…

You May Not Know You Have This Disorder, But There’s One Fast and Easy Way to Find Out

Each year over 1 million people in the United States alone and millions more worldwide die from heart disease, stroke, respiratory disease and more. 1. Yet despite the careful care by medical specialists, many of these patients also suffered from an undiagnosed disorder that if treated could have saved their lives. That disorder is obstructive sleep apnea. You see, snoring is the loudest sign you may have obstructive sleep apnea. This is according to a new study in Finland. The Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine published the results in July, 2016. 2. But snoring occurs when you are not awake. The thing is, you may suffer from obstructive sleep apnea today and not know it. And if you do not find out if you have this disorder, you may prematurely die. And you may pay extra medical expenses along the way… with less left over in your estate for your spouse and children. Think about how you would rather spend your money. The thousands of dollars you now pay for drugs, doctors, lab tests, insurance premiums, deductibles, copays and more… all unnecessarily.

1 Out of 8 American Adults Have Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Yet 80% Are Undiagnosed

Obstructive sleep apnea is a life-threatening illness. Obstructive sleep apnea is a breathing disorder in which your upper airway collapses and lowers the amount of air that can go into your lungs. So it involves less or no airflow when you are asleep, despite your struggle to breathe. Imagine that… fighting to breathe in air your body won’t let you take in while you are asleep.
The problem is your quality and quantity of sleep throughout the night goes down. This causes you to feel sleepy during the daytime. But that’s not all. Obstructive sleep apnea is also associated with high blood pressure and diabetes.
In fact, obstructive sleep apnea impacts almost 30 million American adults. 3, 4 Yet 8 out of 10 of these folks are not diagnosed or treated. You may be one. Think about that for a minute.
So you may be struggling to breathe when you sleep, feel tired during the day and impacted by other health problems all because of obstructive sleep apnea, a disorder you and your doctor don’t know you have. And the thing is, its easily diagnosed and treated without any pain.

What Could You Do with an Extra $6,300 in Your Pocket?

Undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnea accounted for $149.6 billion in 2015. This is according to a new report by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine in 2016.5, 6 That’s a cost of $6,366 per person. Wow… think about what you could do with $6,000 more in your pocket.

About 58% of the costs of undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnea are attributed to lost productivity. Over 20% of the costs are associated with comorbidities such as high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease, diabetes, asthma, insomnia, depression, anxiety and other mental health disorders. Motor vehicle and workplace accidents make up the remaining 18% and 4%, respectively.

How You Can Save $4,200 a Year if You Have Undiagnosed Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Compared to the costs of staying undiagnosed, the average yearly fees to diagnose and treat obstructive sleep apnea is about $2,105 per person.3 That’s a savings of about $4,200 that you could keep. Maybe more if your insurance pays for it. Right now, many insurance plans cover it. More might soon. So your savings can be even higher.

The key is to find out if you have obstructive sleep apnea. And if you do, then to go get treatment. A big mystery is, unless you have a partner who you sleep with that knows you snore, you may not know you have a problem. About 7 in 10 folks who tell their physician about snoring do so because they disturb their partner. 7 But many people never tell their doctors.

Think of snoring as a warning sign. There’s is a good chance you have obstructive sleep apnea if you snore and/or feel sleepy during the daytime. But no matter if you snore and if you sleep alone or with a partner, you should get tested. The sooner the better for your health and your wallet.

Two Easy Ways You Can Get Tested for Obstructive Sleep Apnea

You can find out if you have obstructive sleep apnea with testing. There are two ways you can test. One takes time and is costly and not pleasant. The other is fast and affordable.

The first method is to get tested in a sleep lab or center with the use of polysomnography (PSG). 8 Your health care provider will put electrodes on your face, head and chest. You’ll keep these on while you sleep there overnight. This test records certain body functions as you sleep. These include air flow in and out of your lungs as you breathe. It records the level of oxygen in your blood. And it monitors other key functions as you sleep.

Yet getting tested at a sleep center takes time to get your doctor to approve and schedule. Plus, you may not enjoy sleeping away from home and the high costs involved.

The second way is easier to get tested. It’s with a home sleep apnea testing kit by VirtuOx.

You get to sleep in your own bed. And you don’t have to wear so many electrodes. With just a sensor on your finger, nose and a small device on a belt around your chest, VirtuOx can tell if you have obstructive sleep apnea.

VirtuOx sends the home sleep testing device to your door. It comes with complete instructions and a toll-free technical support line 24/7, if you should need it. After you wake up the next day, you just ship it back in the pre-paid priority mail envelope. Then in three days, your doctor will get the report of your results. It’s that easy.

Plus, its low cost. In fact, it’s between 10% to 33% of the cost of an in-lab study. So you can save money with added convenience. Now isn’t that a better way to get tested for sleep apnea?

There are two ways you can get the VirtuOx home sleep test. One is through your doctor. The other is by a doctor over the phone. You can learn more about how to get the test right here. 

How Treatment Can Make You Feel Revitalized

If you test positive for obstructive sleep apnea, there’s a cost effective treatment that can make you feel revitalized. Plus, it can reduce your short and long term health risks.

But first, listen to what the American Academy of Sleep Medicine found in their study. They discovered that diagnosing and treating every patient in the U.S. who has obstructive sleep apnea would save $100.1 billion in the U.S. economy this year.

For you, treatment can help you be more productive at work. Plus, it can help you lower your risks of high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease and diabetes. And it can reduce your risk of accidents at work and when you drive a vehicle.

AASM President Dr. Ronald Chervin says "Patients often report that they feel like a new person after receiving treatment for sleep apnea… Restoring and maintaining healthy sleep is essential for the achievement of optimal health.“

Treating Your Sleep Apnea Can Help You Sleep Like a Baby, Plus Save You from Hidden Health Costs

The good news is treating obstructive sleep apnea is easy and fast. The most common way to treat obstructive sleep apnea is with the use of a Positive Airways Pressure (PAP) device.

The PAP device holds your airway open by using air pressure that goes through your nose with a mask. Then the air travels down the back of your throat and enters your upper airway. You’ll know how much air pressure to use fromthe results of your diagnostic test.