Sleepacta boasts partnerships and develops projects in collaboration with schools of excellence, research centers and university foundations of international standing, and applies its technologies in the field, in collaboration with hospitals.
The project was initiated in 2020, with the aim to analyze the impact on sleep of young patients, wearing alarmed continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) sensors used for continuous blood glucose monitoring in pediatric patients with Type I Diabetes (T1D). Forty-seven children/adolescents were monitored by actigraphy with Dormi algorithm, and the result of the study confirmed improved metabolic control of hypoglycemia in the use of CGM sensors, without negatively impacting the duration and quality of sleep, thus leading to an improvement in the quality of life, both for patients and for young parents and family members.
Paper: Franceschi, R., Scotton, C., Leonardi, L. et al. Impact of intermittently scanned continuous glucose monitoring with alarms on sleep and metabolic outcomes in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes. Acta Diabetol 59, 911–919 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00592-022-01882-3
Stella Maris Foundation is the IRCCS Scientific Institute for the diagnosis and treatment of Childhood and Adolescent Neuropsychiatric Disorders. Neuropsychiatric disorders of childhood and adolescence are very heterogeneous and collectively affect with a frequency of about 1 every 5 children and are therefore among the most common childhood disorders. Often sleep disturbances in these children are a cause or a consequence of these disorders and being able to objectively monitor sleep by means of a minimally invasive sensor in this large population of children allows to identify specific features of individual profiles, supporting clinicians for proper therapeutic framing.
The PREMED2 project, aimed at the prevention, through precision medicine, of Type II Diabetes, was initiated with the Department of Medicine. Identifying subjects at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes can facilitate the development of preventive interventions to focus on those who will benefit, saving costs and potential side effects for subjects at lower risk. For this project, it is intended to recruit at least 1,200 subjects with ≥20% risk of developing diabetes over the next 10 years, and they will be grouped and typified on the basis of dietary habits, physical activity (using Sleepacta wearable device), and metabolic profile.
Dravet syndrome is a rare form of childhood epilepsy. The Dravet Italia is a non-profit organization (NGO), established through the cooperation of parents and doctors with the intent of improving the quality of life of children with this serious condition. The purpose of the association is to support clinical research aimed at a greater understanding of the disease itself with the objective of finding increasingly more effective therapies and treatment options. Sleepacta fits perfectly to the needs of this organization as it offers a noninvasive sleep monitoring tool for young patients suffering from Dravet syndrome.
In collaboration with the Italian Association of Sleep Physicians, a research project was initiated on patients with Alzheimer's disease and patients with Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to evaluate the impact of sleep and circadian parameters as a cause or perhaps effect of the occurrence of this neurodegeneration. Indeed, some specific actigraphic features are appreciable in the early stage of the disease. Additionally, with Dormi it also becomes possible to monitor not only the sleep profile but also the daytime activity: this could result in a new method of analysis and monitoring of patients undergoing cognitive-behavioral treatment.
An innovative corporate welfare project was carried out for Geico SpA, involving employees in sleep analysis using the certified medical device DORMI. The initiative enabled the monitoring of the sleep-wake cycle, promoting the well-being and health of the workforce.
Sleepacta collaborates with Accapi on an innovative project aimed at evaluating the effects of garments made with FIR (Far Infrared Radiation) technology on sleep quality. FIR fibers, designed to harness infrared energy in the 4–14 µm range, may have a positive impact on nighttime rest. The ongoing study uses the certified medical device DORMI to monitor and analyze participants' sleep parameters, with the goal of assessing the potential benefits of this technology.
Sleepacta collaborates with Riccardo Corredi on a project dedicated to optimizing sleep quality. Thanks to the use of the certified medical device DORMI, the company's clients can monitor their sleep and receive personalized recommendations to configure their purchased mattresses optimally.
For Forti Holding SpA, a corporate welfare project is being launched that will involve employees in sleep analysis using the certified medical device DORMI, promoting workers' well-being and health.
The Sleep Center of the Santa Chiara Hospital in Pisa uses the DORMI actigraphy system in daily clinical practice as a valuable support for doctors in the diagnosis and management of sleep disorders.
Sleepacta is a startup company spin-off of the University of Pisa, which was born from the experience of a team of researchers, doctors and engineers who have been studying sleep for years, from its role in the modulation of sports performance to its clinical impairment.
Sleepacta counts, among its founders, a group of Italian researchers, engineers and clinicians, who still lead the company’s scientific team today. Most of them, who come from the academic excellence of the university Scuola Superiore e di Perfezionamento of the Sant’Anna in Pisa, gained added experience abroad at the world’s best research labs on sleep-wake cycle regulation mechanisms.
In addition to neuroscientific know-how, the team offers a very high level of expertise in Artificial Intelligence tools and techniques. The skills of the founding team have been harmonized and integrated with professional profiles coming from corporate backgrounds with experience in multinational contexts. This has given Sleepacta a new and more efficient structure in the process of development and conversion from a University spin-off to full-fledged company.
