1540 – Vigilance testing for the assessment of excessive daytime sleepiness

Amendment to existing MBS item

Two types of vigilance testing are currently performed as part of accepted world’s best practice – Multiple Sleep Latency Testing (MSLT) and Maintenance of Wakefulness Testing (MWT). MSLT involves overnight laboratory-based polysomnography, followed by multiple nap attempts the following day to assess sleep latency and sleep type. MWT involves overnight laboratory-based polysomnography, followed by multiple attempts to stay awake the following day while observed in a standardised, sleep promoting situation.

Type: Investigative

Hypersomnolence (excessive sleepiness) is a key feature of narcolepsy and idiopathic hypersomnia and other central disorders of hypersomnolence. It refers to the inability to stay awake and alert during major waking episodes of the day, resulting in periods of irrepressible need for sleep or unintended lapses into drowsiness or sleep. Excessive sleepiness is associated with significant morbidity and mortality risk, including an increased risk for motor vehicle and workplace accidents. Objective assessment of the presence and severity of excessive sleepiness is critical for the diagnosis of these conditions, and conversely, objective assessment of the effectiveness of treatment for these conditions is critical in ensuring safe motor vehicle performance and when clinical history is an unreliable indicator of response.

• PASC meeting: 9 August 2018
• ESC meeting: -
• MSAC meeting: -