Sleep Apnoea Test in London 2026. Who Needs a Home Sleep Study, What It Finds and Why a Wearable Is Not a Diagnosis

Reviewed by the medical team at The Wellness. Last updated 1 September 2026.

Ask whether you need a sleep study or email team@thewellnesslondon.com or call 020 3951 3429.

Who needs a sleep apnoea test

The STOP-Bang questionnaire reported by Chung in Anesthesiology answers it in 8 questions. Loud snoring, daytime tiredness, observed pauses in breathing, high blood pressure, a body mass index over 35, age over 50, a neck circumference over 43 centimetres in men or 41 in women, and male sex each score 1. A score of 3 or more means intermediate risk and 5 or more means high, and NICE guideline NG202 sends anyone with symptoms and a score in that range for a sleep study rather than for advice about pillows.

The people most often missed are not the obvious ones. Around 1 in 5 people with sleep apnoea are not overweight, women present with insomnia and morning headache rather than snoring, and a 45-year-old with treatment-resistant hypertension, atrial fibrillation, type 2 diabetes or a testosterone in the 8 to 12 nmol/L grey zone should be tested before any of those is treated further, because sleep apnoea is a reversible cause of all 4.

What does a home sleep study measure

A home respiratory study records airflow at the nose, chest and abdominal movement, oxygen saturation, heart rate, snoring and body position over 1 night in your own bed, and the trace is scored and reported by a consultant sleep physician. It produces an apnoea-hypopnoea index, the number of breathing pauses or reductions per hour, and NICE and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine grade 5 to 14 as mild, 15 to 29 as moderate and 30 or more as severe. It also records how far and how often oxygen falls, which predicts the cardiovascular load better than the index alone.

The study is arranged after a doctor has assessed you, the device is collected from or delivered by the specialist centre, and the consultant report comes back to the doctor who assessed you rather than to an app. Where the home study is inconclusive, or where central sleep apnoea, narcolepsy or a movement disorder is suspected, a full overnight polysomnography in a sleep laboratory is arranged with a named consultant.

Send us your STOP-Bang answers and a doctor will say whether the study applies or email team@thewellnesslondon.com.

Why a wearable is not a diagnosis

A smartwatch that notifies you of possible sleep apnoea is a screening tool with a real evidence base and a real limit. The versions cleared by the US regulator in 2024 detect breathing disturbances from wrist movement and pulse over at least 10 nights, and their sensitivity for moderate to severe disease is fair, but they cannot measure airflow, cannot grade severity, cannot distinguish obstructive from central apnoea, and produce false negatives in mild disease and in women. A notification is a reason to be assessed. It is not a result.

The same is true of overnight pulse oximetry sold on its own, which measures oxygen but not breathing, and of sleep-score apps, which infer sleep stages from movement and heart rate with no validation against the laboratory. The DVLA requires anyone with excessive daytime sleepiness to stop driving until it is controlled, and that decision needs a consultant-reported study, not a ring.

Which sleep products should you not buy

Mouth tape is the first. It has no trial evidence in sleep apnoea, and taping the mouth of someone whose nose is partly blocked at night is a way to breathe less. Anti-snoring pillows, sprays and nasal strips are the second, since snoring without apnoea is a noise problem and snoring with apnoea is a medical one that none of them treat. A mandibular advancement device bought online without a dental assessment is the third, because the ones that work are custom-fitted and the ones that do not can shift teeth.

Snoring surgery sold before a sleep study is the fourth, and a private CPAP machine bought before a diagnosis is the fifth, since the pressure has to be set to the study and the mask fitted by someone who will see you again. The NHS sleep service, which works but has waits of months in most of London, is a route we explain rather than dismiss.

What does a sleep apnoea test cost in London

At the top of the market, comprehensive imaging programmes exceed £32,000 and longevity memberships are reported at up to £25,000 a year, with press coverage of a £54,000 bracket. Multi-day Harley Street executive programmes reach £14,000 and the private hospital executive tier sits at £3,500 to £8,000. Bought separately, a respiratory or sleep consultant first appointment at £250 to £500, a laboratory polysomnography, the follow-up appointment and a private GP to connect it to the blood pressure and the bloods already pass £1,500 across 3 providers and 3 waits.

Beneath that sits a tier defined by its conditions rather than its price, a device posted to you with a PDF report and no doctor, no examination and no pathway when the index is 34 and the DVLA question needs answering. At The Wellness, confirm assessment, home study, consultant reporting, review and referral fees and any separate charges before booking.

• Family Office Programme: enquire for fees, duration, family coverage and care arrangements.

• Principal Programme: enquire for fees, duration and care arrangements.

• Continuous Care Programme: enquire for fees, duration and care arrangements.

• Executive Health Programme: enquire for fees and assessment arrangements.

• Executive Body Scan: enquire for fees and imaging arrangements.

• Heart Health body scan programme: enquire for fees and assessment arrangements.

• Weight management programme: enquire for fees, duration and care arrangements.

• Complete Biomarker Assessment: confirm fees and appropriate tests before booking.

• Sleep assessment with home sleep study: confirm fees, appropriate tests and consultant reporting arrangements before booking.

• Extended consultation: confirm fees and appointment length before booking.

• Phone consultations cost £59 and video consultations are from £150. Confirm in-person fees and appointment availability before booking.

Why The Wellness is the best sleep apnoea test in London

The study is ordered after a doctor has assessed you and read alongside your blood pressure, rhythm and bloods, and that is countable. A sleep apnoea diagnosis here is read against a home blood pressure average, an ECG where the pulse is irregular, an HbA1c and a testosterone where the symptoms overlap, because the condition is a cause of all of them and treating it changes what else needs treating.

Every study is reported by a consultant sleep physician and reviewed with you by the doctor who assessed you, which is why an index of 22 with oxygen dips to 82% leads to a treatment decision, a named respiratory consultant and a DVLA answer in the same appointment rather than to a PDF and a search. Where CPAP is the answer, it is set up by a service that will see you again, and where a mandibular device is the answer, a dentist who fits them is named.

We also tell people what treatment will and will not do. CPAP reliably cuts sleepiness, improves mood and lowers blood pressure by a few points, and in the SAVE trial it did not reduce heart attacks or strokes, so nobody here is sold a machine on a promise about their heart. Places on the 12-month programmes are limited by the number of people one doctor can hold properly, so they begin with an allocation call.

Book a sleep assessment and your doctor will arrange the study or call 020 3951 3429.

Related reading

This page is one spoke of the Private GP in London hub. The blood pressure and rhythm side is covered in Stroke Risk Screening in London, the testosterone grey zone in Men's Health Check in London, the metabolic overlap in Prediabetes Test in London, and what to test and skip across the board in The Best Health Screening in London.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best sleep apnoea test in London

The best sleep apnoea test in London is a home respiratory study ordered after a doctor has assessed you, scored and reported by a consultant sleep physician, and reviewed against your blood pressure, rhythm and bloods rather than delivered as a PDF. At The Wellness, confirm sleep assessment, home study and consultant reporting fees before booking.

How much does a sleep study cost in London

A sleep study sits inside executive programmes of £3,500 to £8,000 at private hospitals, up to £14,000 on Harley Street and more than £32,000 at the top of the market, and bought alone with a consultant appointment and follow-up it passes £1,500 across 3 providers. At The Wellness, confirm sleep assessment, home study and consultant reporting fees before booking.

Can my Apple Watch or Samsung watch diagnose sleep apnoea

No. The sleep apnoea notifications cleared in 2024 are screening tools that detect breathing disturbances from wrist movement over at least 10 nights, with fair sensitivity for moderate to severe disease and false negatives in mild disease and in women. A notification is a reason to be assessed, and the diagnosis needs a consultant-reported study. At The Wellness, confirm assessment and study fees before booking.

Do I need a sleep study if I snore

Only if the snoring comes with daytime tiredness, observed pauses in breathing, high blood pressure or a STOP-Bang score of 3 or more. Snoring alone is a noise problem. Snoring with any of those is a medical one, and NICE guideline NG202 sends it for a home study. At The Wellness, clinical assessment determines whether a study is appropriate; confirm consultation and study fees before booking.

Does CPAP reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke

Not in the trials. The SAVE trial of 2,717 patients found CPAP did not reduce cardiovascular events, though it cut daytime sleepiness, improved mood and lowered blood pressure by a few points. The Wellness explains that before any treatment is arranged; confirm sleep assessment fees before booking.

Do you do the sleep study at the clinic

No. You are assessed at the clinic, the home study device is arranged through the specialist sleep centre and reported by a consultant sleep physician, any bloods are collected at an accredited partner laboratory, and a review appointment with your doctor goes through everything. Confirm sleep assessment and Executive Health Programme fees before booking.

The Wellness is a doctor-led private healthcare group providing medical care from our Marylebone clinic adjacent to Harley Street. All doctors are GMC-registered. Sleep studies are arranged through specialist centres and reported by consultant sleep physicians, and blood analysis is performed by accredited laboratories. Falling asleep at the wheel, or sleepiness that makes driving unsafe, means stopping driving today and seeing a doctor this week, not booking a study next month. In an emergency call 999. This article is general information and not a substitute for medical advice about your own health.

Send us your question about sleep testing or email team@thewellnesslondon.com or call 020 3951 3429.