Astro-Med
Introduces Home Sleep Screener
as Medicare Issues New Guidelines for Home Sleep Study Reimbursement
WEST WARWICK,
RI, Mar 17, 2008 -- Astro-Med, Inc. (NASDAQ: ALOT) announced today the
availability of a new lightweight sleep screener for use in home sleep
studies, to be sold under its Grass Technologies brand. The unit, called
SleepTrek(R)3, was developed over a period of years in anticipation
of approval for reimbursement by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services (CMS) in Washington, D.C. On March 14, 2008, CMS announced
its decision to provide for Medicare reimbursement of home sleep studies
using devices such as Astro-Med's SleepTrek3.
"SleepTrek3 will make the benefit of sleep study available to many
people who would otherwise not have been studied because they would
not have met the high criteria to receive a doctor's order for a full-study
in a sleep lab," said Everett Pizzuti, President and COO of Astro-Med,
Inc. "This is a convenient and less costly way of identifying people
who might have a sleep problem. It is estimated that around 30 million
Americans may have some sort of sleep disorder, and many more of them
will now receive screenings with SleepTrek 3."
Until the present time, most sleep studies were conducted in sleep laboratories
because Medicare and Medicaid would only compensate medical professionals
for studies performed in laboratories. It is widely believed that this
effectively reduced the number of patients who received screening for
sleep disorders.
"We are excited about the new growth potential in the Sleep market
as a result of the Medicare approval and the introduction of SleepTrek3.
We expect this will benefit not only existing hospitals and sleep labs,
but because of the low price of SleepTrek3, we expect to see the market
expand to other physicians," said Pizzuti.
With the availability of SleepTrek3, doctors will now be able to order
sleep screenings for patients who are considered likely to have sleep
disorders such as sleep apnea, giving them the portable SleepTrek3 to
set up and use themselves, in their homes. For those patients whose
SleepTrek3 screening results suggest the possibility of a disorder,
a more extensive sleep study would be conducted in a laboratory setting.
SleepTrek3 is a lightweight, portable, six-channel "type III"
sleep monitor designed to screen patients suspected of having sleep
disorders. It records the home patient's airflow, snoring, blood oxygen
saturation, pulse rate, body position, and effort, all known indicators
of sleep disorder.
A patient will set up the SleepTrek3 him or herself at home and simply
go to sleep. SleepTrek3 will record data from the patient's at-home
sleep for up to 12 hours. The next day, a certified sleep laboratory
will review the data from the patient's home sleep study and print a
comprehensive report and analysis using associated Grass Technologies
software. Each SleepTrek3 is supplied with sensors, a pouch that allows
patients to wear it comfortably, a rechargeable battery, and software
for data review and report generation.
SleepTrek3 home sleep screener is the latest in the Grass Technologies
family of sleep diagnostic products, which include full in-lab sleep
screening systems, wireless sleep screeners, and type II sleep screeners.
The Grass brand has developed PSG, EEG, and other neurophysiological
monitoring systems since 1935, manufacturing and directly selling and
supporting systems for use by hospitals and labs.
About Astro-Med, Inc.
Astro-Med, Inc. (NASDAQ: ALOT) is a leading manufacturer of high tech
specialty printing systems, electronic medical instrumentation, and
test and measurement instruments sold under the brand names Astro-Med(R),
Grass(R) Technologies and QuickLabel(R) Systems. Astro-Med, Inc. products
are employed around the world in a wide range of industrial, scientific,
test and measurement applications, for product identification applications
in consumer and industrial markets, and for clinical and research purposes
in the field of life sciences. More information is available at www.astro-medinc.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
This news release contains forward-looking statements, and actual results
may vary from those expressed or implied herein. Factors that could
affect these results include those mentioned in Astro-Med's FY2007 annual
report and its annual and quarterly filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission.
Contact:
Everett V. Pizzuti
President
Astro-Med, Inc.
Tel: 800-343-4039
www.grasstechnologies.com
