The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) administered a certification examination in sleep medicine from 1978 to 1990. The AASM then voted to create the independent American Board of Sleep Medicine (ABSM), and the ABSM assumed responsibility for the exam from 1991 to 2006.
Although the ABSM no longer administers the board exam in sleep medicine, candidates who passed the exam retain lifetime certification as a Diplomate of the ABSM. The ABSM will continue to maintain and verify all of its certification records.