Founded in 2012 in Berlin, Germany, the International Sleep Science and Technology Association (ISSTA) is headed by sleep science and sleep medicine experts from all over the world. Its goal is to integrate various disciplines in sleep medicine and science and combine modern research with emerging technologies to further raise the educational levels on sleep medicine.

ISSTA aims to improve the quality of sleep, daytime function, and overall quality of life—of not only groups with sleep disorders, but also the population with sleep complaints and disturbances. It is comprised of a board of directors and 6 committees (the international committee, popularizing committee, research & development committee, industrialization committee, education committee, and global policy & regulation committee).

ISSTA Vision

Sleep medicine will advance not only through incremental improvements of traditional sleep technology, which focuses on the utilization of polysomnography for the diagnosis and management of sleep disorders, but also on new and emerging technologies that can assist in preventing sleep disorders, decreasing morbidity, and improving quality of sleep, daytime function, and the overall quality of life, according to the ISSTA. Through the cooperation between the governments, academia, and industries in different countries, ISSTA should be able to foster sustainable economic growth and shared interests globally by raising the living standards and promoting the sleep-related industrial development.

ISSTA Leadership

Five people manage the ISSTA. The president is Rayleigh Ping-Ying Chiang, MD, MMS, who is affiliated with the Berlin and Taiwan chapters. He is deputy superintendent of Kang-Ning General Hospital and director of the sleep technology special interest group, Innovation and Synergy for Intelligent Home and Living Technology Center at National Taiwan University in Taipei.

The executive vice president is Murat Özgören, MD, PhD, vice rector, of Dokuz Eylül University in Turkey and professor, faculty of medicine, department of biophysics, Brain Dynamics Research Center at Dokuz Eylul University in Turkey.

The membership vice president is Thomas Penzel, PhD, research director of the Sleep Medicine Center at the Charité, University Hospital Berlin.

The secretary is Ofer Jacobowitz, MD, PhD, FAASM, FAAOA, co-director of sleep at ENT and Allergy Associates in Manhattan, NY.

The treasurer is Niels Wessel, PhD, head of the cardiovascular physics group at the department of physics of Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.

ISSTA Initiative: Developing Industrial Standards in Sleep Technology Field

The following 10 committees are working on the ISSTA’s efforts to develop industrial standards in the sleep technology field.

  1. Characterization of Biosignals for Sleep and Health Technology
  2. Quality of Data from Sleep and Health Related Biosignals Monitoring (including medical instruments and non-medical devices, including but not limited to wearable technology)
  3. Quality of Sleep, Health and Wellness Applications and underlying algorithms, including big data analysis, IoT, blockchain, blockchain IoT, and artificial intelligence extension
  4. Standards on Information Provision Assisting Sleep-Related Lifestyle
  5. Sleep, Health, and Wellness Framework for Community
  6. Standards for Sleep & Health-related Medical Instruments
  7. Sleep, Health and Wellness Technology Infrastructure for Smart City
  8. Standards for Detection and Analysis of Fatigue Level (including sleepy drivers and fatigued workers)
  9. The Standards of Sleep and Health-related Environments
  10. Risk Assessment for Errors of Sleep, Health and Wellness Technology Monitoring

US Clinician Opportunities

For US clinicians, ISSTA can offer comprehensive work on the future development of sleep medicine in various committees. The ISSTA’s work cover many different areas, with an overarching focus on developing sleep medicine and the related technology overall.

ISSTA can offer a consolidated response to the future development of sleep medicine through our varied work. The ISSTA brings a cohort of medical researchers and clinicians from US universities such as Stanford, Mayo Clinic, University of Washington, and Mount Sinai, among others. ISSTA is recruiting young professional members with “Young Physician Section” and “Young Scientist Section.”

To join the ISSTA, visit https://www.isstasleep.com/joing-us. The cost is 50 Euro for a 1-year membership.