In 2021, sleep medicine professionals around the world took to social media to discuss the latest research, build community, and advocate for patients. The AASM’s top tweets of 2021 reveal some of the year’s hottest topics discussed on Twitter, including the growing interest in sleep health disparities, the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, intriguing findings from new sleep and circadian research, and challenges related to the Philips PAP device recall.

1. As the COVID-19 pandemic entered its second year, many turned their attention to the long-term effects the virus has on the body.

In a study of patients diagnosed with post-COVID-19 syndrome, also known as “COVID-19 long-haul syndrome,” the most common symptom was #fatigue. Of the patients in the study, 80% reported unusual fatigue. @MayoProceedings http://mayocl.in/3yDUTuU

2. Former NFL football player Aaron Taylor raised public awareness of obstructive sleep apnea.

Football champ @AaronTaylorCFB teamed up with the AASM to help you tackle obstructive sleep apnea. Aaron encourages you to defend your sleep by getting help for sleep apnea. http://defendsleep.com

3. Understanding how the brain solves problems during sleep fascinated our online community.

If you find yourself staying awake to solve a problem or make a decision, let #sleep do the work for you. The brain finds connections and solves problems while we sleep. @HarvardHealth http://bit.ly/3ul9Rma

4. Social inequities in sleep caught the attention of our online community.

A new @washingtonpost article discusses the reasons behind the sleep gap between social disadvantaged racial minorities and wealthier individuals. http://wapo.st/3jhsns2

5. An interesting study called attention to the impact of sleep disruptions during pediatric hospitalization.

A new study reports that hospitalized #children experienced considerable nighttime waking and sleep restriction to levels below national clinical recommendations at a time when they most needed the benefits of #sleep. http://bit.ly/3fIRGmY

6. The sleep medicine community mourned the loss of Dr. Allan Rechtschaffen and celebrated his life and legacy online.

Allan Rechtschaffen, Ph.D., a pioneer in the field of sleep research, passed away on Nov. 29, 2021. In recognition of his long career and many, many contributions, view this @ResearchSleep interview with Dr. Rechtschaffen. http://bit.ly/3df3MBI

7. The AASM’s call to end daylight saving time gained widespread support on social media.

The AASM and other organizations representing health, safety and education recommended eliminating seasonal time changes and adopting permanent standard time for improved public health and safety in a 2020 AASM position statement. #DaylightSavingTime http://bit.ly/3vfFgIh

8. Sleep professionals and patients grappled with fallout from the recall of Philips PAP devices.

Philips has issued a recall. For patients using affected BiLevel PAP and CPAP devices: Discontinue use of your device & work with your physician or Durable Medical Equipment (DME) provider to determine the most appropriate options for continued treatment. http://philips.to/2TvbL7b

9. As many children returned to in-person learning, the impact of school start times took on new importance.

Surveying 28,000 students over two years, researchers found that later #SchoolStartTimes resulted in significantly longer sleep duration – 29 minutes more for middle schoolers and 45 minutes more for high schoolers. http://bit.ly/3sfnwKA

10. During National Safety Month in June, our online community recognized that healthy sleep is vital for workplace safety.

It’s vital to feel safe on the job. Did you know that sleepy employees are a huge #safety risk in the workplace? An estimated 13% of workplace injuries can be attributed to #sleep problems. #NationalSafetyMonth #NSM @NSCsafety http://bit.ly/3wZvzOy

Connect with the AASM on social media to stay up to date with the latest sleep medicine news, connect with colleagues, and share ideas and insights.