Atlanta’s sleep medicine market serves a metropolitan population with high rates of the risk factors most strongly associated with sleep-disordered breathing, including obesity, hypertension, and the shift work patterns common in Atlanta’s large airport, healthcare, and logistics employment base, creating substantial clinical demand for diagnostic polysomnography and CPAP management across both academic sleep centers and independent outpatient sleep practices. The city’s sleep clinic infrastructure spans from independent physician-owned practices focused on pulmonary sleep medicine through behavioral sleep medicine specialists who treat insomnia, circadian rhythm disorders, and CPAP adherence challenges using cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia, to the large academic sleep center programs at Emory that manage the most complex polysomnographic findings including REM sleep behavior disorder, central sleep apnea syndromes, and narcolepsy requiring comprehensive evaluation and treatment. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) provides accreditation for sleep centers and sleep testing facilities based on compliance with standards covering physician qualifications, polysomnography technologist credentialing, equipment specifications, and patient care protocols, and AASM accreditation is the most meaningful quality indicator available to patients evaluating Atlanta sleep clinics. Georgia requires sleep medicine physicians to hold a medical degree and active Georgia license, and board certification through the American Board of Sleep Medicine or through subspecialty certification in sleep medicine from a primary specialty board indicates additional qualifications beyond the licensure standard.
When selecting a sleep clinic in Atlanta, verify that the facility holds AASM accreditation for sleep center or sleep testing facility status, as AASM accreditation requires board-certified sleep medicine physician oversight, credentialed registered polysomnographic technologist staffing, and equipment meeting AASM technical standards. Ask whether the clinic offers both attended polysomnography in a dedicated sleep laboratory and home sleep apnea testing, since home sleep testing is appropriate for straightforward obstructive sleep apnea screening while attended polysomnography is required for complex presentations, pediatric patients, and conditions other than obstructive sleep apnea. Confirm that the practice provides CPAP titration and ongoing CPAP adherence support, since diagnosis without adequate follow-up for equipment fitting, pressure adjustment, and mask troubleshooting results in poor adherence and treatment failure for many patients. Red flags include clinics that perform only home sleep testing without attended polysomnography capability for complex cases, practices that diagnose sleep apnea and prescribe CPAP without scheduling follow-up to assess adherence and response, and facilities that cannot provide access to a sleep medicine physician with behavioral sleep medicine training for patients with insomnia or CPAP intolerance.
Top Sleep Clinic Companies in Atlanta
1. Sleep Disorders Center of Georgia
Address: 993 Johnson Ferry Road, Building C, Suite 300, Atlanta, GA 30342
Phone: (404) 257-0080
Website: https://www.sleepcenterga.com
Hours: Monday–Friday 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM
Licenses & Certifications: Sleep studies conducted at Northside Hospital Sleep Disorder Center, AASM accredited; four metro Atlanta locations
Services:
- Diagnostic evaluation and sleep consultation
- Polysomnography (overnight sleep study)
- CPAP titration studies
- Home sleep apnea testing
- Multiple sleep latency testing (MSLT) for narcolepsy
- Maintenance of wakefulness testing (MWT)
- Obstructive sleep apnea diagnosis and treatment
- Narcolepsy evaluation and management
- Insomnia evaluation
- Restless leg syndrome and periodic limb movement disorder treatment
- Circadian rhythm disorder evaluation
- Parasomnia evaluation including sleep walking
- Snoring assessment and management
About: Sleep Disorders Center of Georgia provides comprehensive sleep medicine services through its Sandy Springs office location and conducts polysomnography studies at the AASM-accredited Northside Hospital Sleep Disorder Center, combining the convenience and physician continuity of a dedicated outpatient sleep practice with the quality assurance of AASM-accredited sleep laboratory infrastructure across four Atlanta metro locations. The practice’s clinical scope covers the full spectrum of sleep disorders recognized by the International Classification of Sleep Disorders, from the most prevalent obstructive sleep apnea and insomnia through less common conditions including narcolepsy, REM sleep behavior disorder, advanced sleep phase disorder, and parasomnias, enabling evaluation and management without referral to a separate specialty center for complex presentations. The practice’s sleep study partnership with Northside Hospital’s AASM-accredited sleep facilities provides patients with high-quality polysomnography in dedicated sleep laboratory settings designed for overnight study comfort, with experienced registered polysomnographic technologists conducting and monitoring studies. Sleep Disorders Center of Georgia’s location at 993 Johnson Ferry Road in Sandy Springs positions it within the same medical building complex as multiple other specialty practices, facilitating care coordination with pulmonologists, otolaryngologists, and primary care physicians who co-manage patients with comorbid sleep disorders.
2. Emory Sleep Center
Phone: (404) 712-7533
Website: https://www.emoryhealthcare.org/services/sleep-center
Licenses & Certifications: American Academy of Sleep Medicine accredited; academic medical center sleep center with research and advanced diagnostic capabilities
Services:
- Comprehensive sleep medicine evaluation
- Attended polysomnography with advanced monitoring
- Home sleep apnea testing
- CPAP and BiPAP titration
- Multiple sleep latency testing for narcolepsy and hypersomnia
- Oral appliance therapy coordination
- Upper airway surgery evaluation coordination
- Insomnia and behavioral sleep medicine
- Advanced diagnostics for complex sleep disorders
- Pediatric sleep evaluation in coordination with Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta
- Research and clinical trial participation
About: Emory Sleep Center is an AASM-accredited academic sleep center operating within the Emory Healthcare system, providing sleep medicine services with access to the full diagnostic and subspecialty consultation depth of a major academic medical center for patients with complex or diagnostically uncertain sleep disorders that require more than standard polysomnography and CPAP prescription. The academic setting allows Emory’s sleep medicine physicians to apply the most current evidence-based diagnostic protocols, including advanced polysomnographic montages for complex movement disorder evaluation, video polysomnography for REM behavior disorder assessment, and actigraphy-based circadian rhythm evaluation, using the equipment and expertise that most community sleep practices do not maintain. Emory’s sleep medicine program accepts referrals from across the state and region for diagnostically complex cases including treatment-refractory central sleep apnea, overlap syndrome of sleep apnea and COPD, neuromuscular disease with sleep-disordered breathing, and narcolepsy with complex medication management requirements. The integration with Emory’s pulmonology, neurology, otolaryngology, and bariatric surgery programs facilitates comprehensive multidisciplinary management for patients where sleep disorders intersect with other medical conditions requiring specialist co-management.
3. Atlanta Insomnia and Behavioral Health Services
Address: 755 Commerce Drive, Suite 410, Decatur, GA 30030
Phone: (404) 378-0441
Website: https://www.sleepyintheatl.com
Services:
- Cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I)
- Behavioral sleep medicine evaluation
- Insomnia treatment without medication dependence
- Circadian rhythm disorder treatment
- CPAP adherence counseling and behavioral support
- Sleep restriction therapy
- Stimulus control therapy
- Sleep hygiene education
- Nightmare disorder treatment
- Hypersomnolence evaluation
About: Atlanta Insomnia and Behavioral Health Services occupies a distinct and underrepresented niche in the Atlanta sleep market as a practice focused exclusively on behavioral sleep medicine, providing cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia and behavioral approaches to sleep disorders rather than the polysomnography and CPAP-centered model that characterizes most Atlanta sleep clinics. CBT-I is the American Academy of Sleep Medicine’s recommended first-line treatment for chronic insomnia, superior to sleep medication in long-term outcome studies, but requires trained behavioral sleep medicine specialists to deliver effectively and is unavailable at most Atlanta sleep medicine practices that are organized around sleep apnea diagnosis and treatment rather than insomnia and behavioral intervention. The practice’s two-decade-plus combined therapist experience in behavioral sleep medicine provides patients with depth of clinical expertise in the specific behavioral techniques including sleep restriction, stimulus control, cognitive restructuring for sleep-related anxiety, and relaxation training that constitute CBT-I, distinguishing the practice from general mental health therapists who may offer “sleep therapy” without specialized behavioral sleep medicine training. The Decatur location serves the eastern Atlanta intown corridor where demand for specialized behavioral health services is consistent among the educated and health-engaged professional population.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How do I know if I need a sleep study in Atlanta?
A: Common signs that a sleep study evaluation is warranted include witnessed apneas or breathing pauses during sleep reported by a bed partner, loud and disruptive snoring particularly if accompanied by gasping or choking, excessive daytime sleepiness causing difficulty staying awake during sedentary activities, morning headaches, unrefreshing sleep despite adequate time in bed, and difficulty concentrating or memory problems attributed to poor sleep quality. For insomnia lasting more than three months with significant daytime impairment, a behavioral sleep medicine evaluation is appropriate regardless of whether polysomnography is indicated. Restless leg syndrome causing significant sleep-onset difficulty, and symptoms of narcolepsy including sudden muscle weakness triggered by emotion, sleep paralysis, or vivid dream-like hallucinations at sleep onset, are additional indications for sleep specialist evaluation. Your primary care physician can provide a referral to a sleep clinic, and most AASM-accredited Atlanta sleep centers schedule new patients within two to four weeks of referral receipt.
Q: What happens during a sleep study in Atlanta?
A: An overnight polysomnography study at an Atlanta AASM-accredited sleep center involves arriving at the sleep laboratory in the evening, typically between 8 PM and 10 PM, and being connected to monitoring equipment by a registered polysomnographic technologist. Standard attended polysomnography monitors brain wave activity via EEG, eye movements, muscle activity, heart rhythm, respiratory airflow and effort, oxygen saturation, and leg movements throughout the night using electrodes and sensors applied before the study begins. The technologist monitors your sleep remotely from a control room throughout the night and adjusts equipment as needed. Most patients sleep adequately for a valid study despite the monitoring equipment, and the entire night’s data is reviewed and interpreted by the sleep medicine physician. A written report is provided to your referring physician, typically within one to two weeks.
Q: What is the difference between a home sleep test and an in-lab sleep study in Atlanta?
A: A home sleep apnea test (HSAT) is a simplified portable monitoring device that you take home to wear during a normal night of sleep in your own bed, measuring airflow, respiratory effort, and oxygen saturation to identify obstructive sleep apnea. HSATs are appropriate for patients with moderate to high clinical suspicion of uncomplicated obstructive sleep apnea, are more convenient and less expensive than attended polysomnography, and are covered by most insurance plans for appropriate indications. Attended polysomnography conducted in an AASM-accredited sleep laboratory measures a much broader array of physiological parameters including brain activity, eye movements, and multiple muscle groups, enabling diagnosis of conditions beyond obstructive sleep apnea including narcolepsy, REM sleep behavior disorder, periodic limb movement disorder, and seizure-related sleep disorders. Your sleep medicine physician will determine which testing modality is appropriate based on your clinical presentation, since home testing is not appropriate for all patients and will miss diagnoses that require in-laboratory polysomnography.
Conclusion
Atlanta’s sleep clinic market provides access to comprehensive sleep disorder diagnosis and treatment across AASM-accredited facilities spanning independent physician practices and major academic sleep centers. Sleep Disorders Center of Georgia provides full-spectrum sleep medicine services at its Sandy Springs location with AASM-accredited polysomnography through Northside Hospital across four metro Atlanta locations. Emory Sleep Center delivers academic medical center diagnostic depth for complex sleep disorders with AASM accreditation, clinical trial access, and subspecialty integration within Emory Healthcare. Atlanta Insomnia and Behavioral Health Services provides the specialized behavioral sleep medicine focus on CBT-I and non-pharmacological insomnia treatment that most Atlanta sleep practices focused on sleep apnea do not offer. Contact each practice to confirm AASM accreditation, insurance acceptance, and scheduling availability for your specific sleep concern.