SARASOTA (Jan. 12, 2026) – Sarasota Memorial Health Care Center announced the opening of Sarasota Memorial’s new, accredited Sleep Disorder Center, a comprehensive program dedicated to evaluating and treating a wide range of sleep disorders that can impact long-term health.
Community members experiencing loud snoring, witnessed pauses in breathing during sleep, unrefreshing sleep, morning headaches, or excessive daytime sleepiness are encouraged to speak with their healthcare provider about a sleep evaluation and potential overnight study. Early diagnosis and effective treatment of sleep disorders can significantly improve quality of life and reduce the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, and other long-term complications.
“Sleep is fundamental to overall health," said Rabih Loutfi, MD, a board-certified pulmonologist, critical care, and sleep medicine physician with SMH First Physicians Group who serves as the center’s medical director. “When sleep is repeatedly disrupted by conditions such as sleep apnea, it can trigger a cascade of effects that negatively impacts immune function, increases the risk of chronic disease and impairs cognitive abilities such as memory and concentration.”
At Sarasota Memorial’s Sleep Disorder Center, a multidisciplinary team provides comprehensive evaluations, overnight diagnostic sleep studies and individualized treatment plans for a wide range of conditions disrupting essential sleep, including obstructive and central sleep apnea, circadian rhythm disorders, insomnia, narcolepsy and hypersomnia, snoring, and restless legs syndrome.
Overnight sleep studies are performed by specially trained, registered sleep technologists in private, hotel-like sleep suites in Sarasota Memorial’s sleep medicine facility, which is accredited by the American Academy for Sleep Medicine. The center utilizes the latest technology, as well as remote monitoring that can be used at home, to record breathing patterns, oxygen levels, brain waves, heart rhythm, and leg movements while patients sleep. Board-certified sleep medicine physicians meet with patients to discuss the results and potential treatment options.
Appointments & Information
The Sarasota Memorial Sleep Disorder Center is located in Waldemere Medical Plaza, 1921 Waldemere Street, Suite 705. Sleep studies and treatments are covered by most major insurance plans. A physician referral is required. For appointments or information, call the SMH Sleep Disorder Center at 941-262-5248 or click here.
About Sarasota Memorial Health Care System
Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is a regional medical center offering Southwest Florida’s greatest breadth and depth of care, with 2,500 physicians and advanced practice providers and nearly 2 million patient visits a year across its network of care. Sarasota County’s largest employer, the community-owned health system includes two full-service hospitals in Sarasota and Venice, freestanding ERs in North Port and Lakewood Ranch, a rehabilitation hospital, behavioral health hospital, skilled nursing facility and comprehensive network of outpatient centers, urgent care clinics and physician practices. Founded in 1925, SMH’s flagship Sarasota hospital is the only Florida hospital to earn a perfect 5-Star rating from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services — every year — since the federal rating program began in 2016.