Join ACOFP in Orlando on Sunday, April 19, for a special three-hour Sleep Medicine Symposium.
Developed in partnership with the Sleep Research Society Foundation, the symposium will include three sessions, with expert instructors:
- Atul Malhotra, MD, FAASM, is Vice Chair of Medicine for Research at UCSD. He is Research Chief of Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep Medicine and Physiology, Peter C. Farrell Presidential Chair and a tenured professor in respiratory medicine.
- Anne Marie Morse, DO, FAASM, is a board-certified adult neurologist with expertise in child neurology and pediatric sleep medicine. Dr. Morse is a prominent leader in neurology and sleep medicine, especially central disorders of hypersomnolence. She is well known across social media as DAMM Good Sleep.
- Philip Gehrman, PhD, CBSM, FAASM, specializes in the delivery of cognitive behavioral and chronotherapeutic interventions for insomnia, circadian rhythm disorders, and other sleep disorders. The overarching goal of his work is to advance the understanding of the links between sleep and mental illness.
Finish off your convention experience strong with this practical and relevant education, worth up to 3.5 CME credits. You'll leave with practical strategies you can start using Monday morning.
General Overview of Sleep Disorders
8:00–9:15 AM
Sleep complaints are among the most common, and most challenging, presentations in primary care. This session provides a practical, primary care–focused framework for evaluating and managing common sleep disorders, including insomnia, obstructive sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome, and central disorders of hypersomnolence. Participants will learn how to use targeted history-taking, validated screening tools, and key diagnostic clues to distinguish between these conditions and build an efficient, symptom-based workup. Emphasis will be placed on when and how to initiate appropriate first-line management strategies that can be safely monitored in primary care, as well as recognizing red flags and clinical scenarios that require timely referral to a sleep specialist for further evaluation and management.
Closing the OSA Care Gap: A Primary Care Playbook
9:30–10:45 AM
Primary care is a key entry point for identifying and treating obstructive sleep apnea. This session offers a practical, stepwise approach to closing common gaps in OSA care: starting with risk stratification grounded in pathophysiology, clinical features, and comorbidities. Participants will learn how to choose evidence-based diagnostic pathways, including when home sleep testing is appropriate versus in-lab polysomnography. The session will also cover first-line treatment strategies that can be initiated and adjusted in primary care for uncomplicated OSA and obesity-related sleep-disordered breathing, and how to recognize when advanced therapies and timely referral to a sleep center are needed.
When Sleep Isn't Restorative: Identifying and Treating Patients with Central Disorders of Hypersomnolence
11:00–12:00 PM
Not all fatigue is “just stress,” and not all sleepiness is explained by short sleep or sleep apnea. This session focuses on the clinical problem of excessive daytime sleepiness and how to approach it efficiently in primary care. Learners will review a practical differential for sleepiness and the key features that should raise suspicion for idiopathic hypersomnia or narcolepsy. The session will outline an evidence-based initial evaluation that can be completed before referral, emphasizing medication and substance review, sleep schedule assessment, and targeted screening, so testing is more accurate, and referrals are higher yield. Participants will also learn which presentations warrant prompt sleep center evaluation and how to counsel patients on the steps needed to prepare for definitive diagnostic testing.
