A dream come true, or a Neuro nightmare? Improving your sleep with digital solutions
In a panel discussion held on June 18, 2024, at HLTH Europe in Amsterdam, experts discussed the growing issue of poor sleep quality and the potential of digital solutions in addressing sleep disorders. The panelists included Carlos Nunez, Guillaume Marchand, Valerie Kirchberger, and Eric Carreel, who shared valuable insights and experiences from their respective fields.
The discussion began with the acknowledgment that the world has been sleeping more poorly over the last 10–20 years, with increasing rates of insomnia and sleep apnea. Carlos Nunez pointed out that “there are 2 billion people roughly who suffer from these [sleep disorders]. So, one, two billion with a B. So one out of every four of you is suffering from one or both conditions.”
Guillaume Marchand, who has access to extensive sleep data, confirmed this trend, stating, “What is really new for us is that the C programmer coming in earlier and earlier, and this is something which is very important, and those are bigger, bigger things is that the crashes because that letter is apnea is coming very often now for a lot of people and a lot of people are diagnosed on this disease, which is a very big subject.”
The panelists emphasized the importance of treating sleep disorders, as they can have severe consequences on physical and mental health. Valerie Kirchberger noted, “We have to treat sleep because it’s like the foundation of your physical and mental health. Yes, no psychiatric disease, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, strokes, etc.”
When discussing the role of sleep trackers in understanding and improving sleep, Eric Carreel shared his personal experience with sleep apnea: “I know this firsthand because I have sleep apnea, a person with mild sleep apnea suffocates five to 15 times every hour. So that’s mild sleep apnea. Every four minutes, you stop breathing to the point where the oxygen in your blood drops.”
The conversation then shifted to the adoption of digital remedies for sleep disorders, particularly cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBTI). Valerie Kirchberger explained, “It’s the one thing you should do. And what happens basically is that one of the most effective methods of coping with various opioids is obviously restriction and stimulus control, so that sounds sexy but doesn’t tell us more. Yeah, you go to bed at the same time every day, you stick to sleep, you sleep windows.”
The panelists agreed that digital therapeutics could help bridge the gap between the limited number of specialists and the growing number of patients seeking treatment. Guillaume Machand stated, “Of course, a little bit. Well, is it available in France? Not yet, but I hopefully hopefully soon. I go because we are blind for several months on waiting lists. In our center. We do it like face to face, but it’s like groups. It’s like a colleague and a name. But for your therapy session where you have to come in, and CBT is the treatment of reference the first line of treatment for maybe 30 years, and it’s the work very well.”
The discussion also touched upon the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in improving sleep quality and treatment. Carlos Nunez explained, “AI is doing a lot of things, too many two points. One is to build the algorithm because science to noninvasive measurements we can go to conclusions which are very deep science to deep learning and to a is what we are doing now is how we can build insights which are really personalised for each patient.”
The panelists shared personal stories and anecdotes highlighting the life-changing impact of proper sleep treatment. Valerie Kirchberger shared the story of an 80-year-old lady who, after completing their digital therapeutic program, stopped using sleeping pills after 50 years and described the following year as the best of her life.
In conclusion, the panel discussion shed light on the growing problem of poor sleep quality and the potential of digital solutions in addressing sleep disorders. The experts agreed that digital therapeutics, combined with AI’s power, could revolutionize how we understand, diagnose, and treat sleep disorders, ultimately improving the quality of life for millions of people worldwide.
