An Israeli-developed “miniature sleep lab” worn on the wrist and one finger to diagnose and identify the source of sleep problems has been named one of the 10 best medical innovations for 2010 by the Cleveland Clinic, one of the best-known medical facilities in the world.

The device, produced and marketed by the Itamar Medical Company, located in Herzliya on Israel’s Mediterranean coast, enables people with sleep problems to spend the night in their own beds rather than at a sleep lab.

The results are usually more accurate when people are monitored in their own beds. The patented, self-contained device, called Watch-PAT 200, poses no risk to the patient.

The device measures signals that indicate changes in the autonomous nervous system caused by respiratory disturbances during sleep. The signals are stored in a removable memory card to be downloaded in the doctor’s office for analysis. The device records respiratory signals, pulse, oxygen saturation and rest/activity cycles.

Sleep experts suspect that sleep disorders are at the root of many work- and automobile-related accidents, sexual dysfunction and depression.

Earlier this year, ISRAEL21c ran a story about another device from Itamar Medical that measures the health of your heart with a fingertip test. That device has received a seal of approval from the Mayo Clinic.