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SLEEP 2026 | Addressing disparities in narcolepsy and idiopathic hypersomnia care
Romy Hoque, MD, FAASM, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, discusses disparities in the diagnosis and management of narcolepsy and idiopathic hypersomnia. Prof. Hoque highlights barriers that contribute to delays in diagnosis and treatment, emphasizes the importance of considering medication affordability alongside efficacy, and shares practical strategies to help improve equitable access to care for patients with central disorders of hypersomnolence. This interview took place at the 40th annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies (APSS) in Baltimore, MD.
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Transcript
Well, you know, disparities in terms of care affect pretty much every area of medicine and every area of sleep medicine as a subspecialty. You know, there are delays to diagnosis, delays to treatment, treatment options that are available to people in terms of what they can afford, what they can’t afford. So, you know, taking these into consideration and having an awareness that, you know, there are barriers to care that patients have will impact not only your ability to diagnose and treat them, but maybe get them through the process a little bit faster...
Well, you know, disparities in terms of care affect pretty much every area of medicine and every area of sleep medicine as a subspecialty. You know, there are delays to diagnosis, delays to treatment, treatment options that are available to people in terms of what they can afford, what they can’t afford. So, you know, taking these into consideration and having an awareness that, you know, there are barriers to care that patients have will impact not only your ability to diagnose and treat them, but maybe get them through the process a little bit faster. There’s, you know, one of the biggest hurdles in the treatment of the central disorder of hypersomnolence is getting people diagnosed. And that can take years to get people in the clinic and get them evaluated and then get them started on treatments. And then the treatments that are available, once you do diagnose them, you know, what can people afford? And so that’s also something that’s really important to consider in terms of, okay, are we going to use the newer medications or are we going to stick to some of the more generic medications? Because even if you have newer medications that are being developed, if you have a patient that can’t afford them, then they’re really of no utility in the patients that you’re treating. So, you know, the tried and true medications that we’re using, you know, we still need to be familiar with because they’re affordable, they’re generic, and people can use them. And so I think those were some of the biggest takeaways from that article in terms of looking at that and just, you know, just trying to describe my own clinical experience of seeing patients in the clinic. I see patients every day. And so this is, you know, these are the barriers and the difficulties that we encounter in treating patients, not only in sleep medicine, but across medicine in general.
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