Sleep Apnea: Medtech's High-Growth Sleeper

(Please see Start-Up, March 2008, for an expanded version of this article). Although the patient population is woefully undiagnosed, approximately 38 million in the US alone suffer from obstructive sleep apnea. There are a number of new technologies in development to improve on surgery and CPAP--traditional treatments for this silent killer--and device makers are casting about for wider markets in which to sell their goods. At its current rate of penetration, OSA will create close to a $3 billion worldwide market within two years.