The August issue of the journal SLEEP includes a new analysis of national data by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which shows striking increases from 1999 to 2010 in the number and percentage of office visits for sleep related problems, the number of office visits for which a diagnosis of sleep apnea was recorded, and the number and percentage of office visits accompanied by a prescription for a sleep medication. According to the authors, it is unclear whether these increases represent a rise in the prevalence of sleep-related difficulties or reflect heightened public awareness of the need for sufficient sleep.
