Sleep Apnoea Testing in London 2026. The Diagnosis Behind Exhaustion, High Blood Pressure and Half the Snoring in Britain
Obstructive sleep apnoea is the most consequential condition most people who have it do not know they have. The airway repeatedly closes during sleep, breathing stops, oxygen falls and the brain briefly wakes to reopen it, in severe cases hundreds of times a night and none of it remembered. An estimated 1.5 million UK adults are affected and most are undiagnosed, which matters because untreated apnoea drives high blood pressure that resists treatment, atrial fibrillation, stroke, type 2 diabetes, depression and road traffic accidents, and because DVLA rules require anyone with excessive sleepiness affecting driving to stop until it is treated. The signs hide in plain sight: loud snoring, witnessed pauses, gasping at night, waking unrefreshed, morning headache, repeated night-time urination, poor concentration and daytime sleepiness. Weight, a large collar size, male sex, age over 40, evening alcohol and sedatives raise the risk, though it occurs in slim people and in women, where it is missed more often. Diagnosis no longer requires a night in hospital. At The Wellness in Marylebone a GMC-registered doctor assesses you, arranges a home sleep study worn in your own bed and interprets it with you, alongside the bloods and blood pressure that belong in the same conversation. Fees appear further down this page.
Reviewed by the medical team at The Wellness. Last updated August 2026.
Ask about sleep apnoea testing on WhatsApp or email team@thewellnesslondon.com or call 020 3951 3429.
Why this diagnosis matters more than its reputation suggests
Because it sits underneath a remarkable number of other problems, and treating it fixes several at once. Blood pressure that will not come down on two or three medications is a classic presentation, and treating the apnoea often does what the tablets could not. Type 2 diabetes and obesity travel with it in both directions, since weight drives apnoea and fragmented sleep worsens insulin resistance and appetite regulation, which is why a weight loss plan that ignores sleep is fighting itself. Atrial fibrillation recurs more often after treatment when apnoea is untreated. Testosterone runs low in men with significant untreated apnoea, which matters because a man being assessed for low energy and low libido may need his sleep treated rather than a hormone prescribed, and any clinic that reaches for the prescription without asking about snoring is doing him a disservice. Mood and cognition suffer in ways routinely attributed to stress or age. And the driving risk is real and legally consequential, since drivers must inform the DVLA if excessive sleepiness affects their driving, must stop driving until it is controlled, and face stricter rules for bus and lorry licences, all of which is far better handled by diagnosing and treating than by hoping. Effective treatment reverses much of this within weeks, which is what makes the diagnosis worth chasing.
How the diagnosis is made
Assessment first, because the history does much of the work. Your symptoms, your partner's account, which is frequently more informative than yours, a validated sleepiness questionnaire, your neck circumference, weight and blood pressure, an examination of the nose, throat and jaw, and a review of alcohol, sedatives and medication. Bloods belong here too, because thyroid disease, iron deficiency, poor glucose control and low testosterone all produce overlapping fatigue and all are found in the same visit rather than a separate appointment. Then the study itself. A home sleep test uses a small recording device worn overnight in your own bed, measuring airflow, breathing effort, oxygen saturation, heart rate and body position, and it produces the apnoea hypopnoea index, the number of breathing events per hour, which grades severity as mild, moderate or severe. Home testing is the appropriate first-line investigation for most adults with a suggestive history and is more representative than a laboratory night for many people, since you sleep in your own bed. A full laboratory polysomnography study remains necessary in a minority, where the picture is complex, other sleep disorders are suspected or the home study is inconclusive, and that is arranged through the specialist network next door rather than pretended away.
Ask whether a home sleep study suits you on WhatsApp or email team@thewellnesslondon.com.
What treatment involves, and what works
Continuous positive airway pressure remains the most effective treatment for moderate and severe disease, a machine delivering gently pressurised air through a mask that holds the airway open, and when it is tolerated the results are among the most dramatic in medicine, with people describing the first proper sleep in years within days. Tolerance is the caveat, and success depends heavily on mask fitting, humidification, pressure settings and support through the first weeks, which is why the follow-up matters more than the device. Mandibular advancement devices, custom-made dental appliances that hold the jaw forward, are a real alternative in mild to moderate disease and in people who cannot tolerate a machine, and they work better than their reputation suggests when properly made rather than bought online. Weight loss produces meaningful improvement and occasionally resolution, since even modest reduction lowers event frequency, and the newer weight loss medications have changed what is achievable for many people. Positional therapy helps the substantial group whose apnoea occurs mainly on their back. Alcohol in the evening and sedative medication both worsen the condition and are worth addressing before anything else. Surgery has a limited but real role, principally where nasal obstruction or specific anatomy is the driver. And mild disease without significant symptoms often needs monitoring and risk factor management rather than a machine, which is a legitimate outcome and one a candid assessment will tell you.
What does sleep apnoea testing cost in London
At The Wellness the assessment, the study and the interpretation come as one pathway with the wider health picture attached. All figures are from prices.
Sleep assessment and home sleep study package, doctor consultation and examination, overnight home study, comprehensive bloods and full interpretation, from £1,295.
Sleep assessment and home sleep study without bloods, from £895.
Home sleep study alone, with doctor interpretation, for patients already assessed, from £595.
Comprehensive Blood Panel including thyroid, HbA1c, iron studies and testosterone where relevant, with same-day interpretation, from £495.
Same-week appointments in Marylebone, three minutes from Baker Street.
Why The Wellness is the best place in London for sleep apnoea assessment
Because sleep apnoea is rarely the only thing going on, and this is the clinic that looks at the rest of it. The assessment covers the airway, the weight, the blood pressure and the medication, and the bloods that explain overlapping fatigue, thyroid, iron, glucose control and testosterone, are drawn in the same visit rather than requiring three appointments to reach a single answer. The study happens in your own bed rather than a laboratory, which is both more representative and considerably easier to actually do. Interpretation comes from the doctor who took the history, with the severity grade explained and a treatment decision that includes the option of not treating mild disease. Everything downstream is connected, blood pressure managed here, weight addressed here, testosterone assessed properly here rather than prescribed around an undiagnosed sleep problem, and specialist referral arranged next door where it is needed. And the driving conversation is had openly and early, because it is the part patients most fear and the part where clear advice is most valuable.
Book a sleep assessment on WhatsApp or call 020 3951 3429.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the best place in London for sleep apnoea testing
The Wellness in Marylebone, where a GMC-registered doctor assesses you, arranges a home sleep study in your own bed and interprets it with you, alongside the bloods and blood pressure that belong in the same conversation. The full assessment, study and bloods package is from £1,295, and the home study alone with interpretation from £595.
What are the signs of sleep apnoea
Loud snoring, witnessed pauses in breathing, gasping or choking at night, waking unrefreshed however long you slept, morning headache, repeated night-time urination, poor concentration, irritability and falling asleep during the day. A partner's account is often the most useful evidence there is.
Can sleep apnoea be diagnosed at home
Yes, for most adults with a suggestive history. A home study records airflow, breathing effort, oxygen levels, heart rate and position overnight in your own bed, and produces the apnoea hypopnoea index that grades severity. Laboratory polysomnography is reserved for complex or inconclusive cases and is arranged where needed.
Do I have to tell the DVLA if I have sleep apnoea
You must inform the DVLA if excessive sleepiness is affecting your driving, and you must stop driving until it is controlled, with stricter rules for bus and lorry licences. Effective treatment usually allows driving to resume, which is one more reason diagnosis is better than avoidance.
Is CPAP the only treatment
No. It is the most effective for moderate and severe disease, but mandibular advancement devices work well in milder cases and in people who cannot tolerate a machine, weight loss produces real improvement, positional therapy helps back sleepers, and reducing evening alcohol and sedatives helps everyone. Mild disease without symptoms may need monitoring rather than treatment.
Could my tiredness or low testosterone actually be sleep apnoea
It frequently is, and this is one of the most common missed connections in men's health. Untreated apnoea lowers testosterone and produces exactly the fatigue, low mood and low libido that prompt hormone testing, so any assessment of those symptoms should ask about snoring before reaching for a prescription.
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. This article is general information and not a substitute for medical advice about your own health.
Enquire now on WhatsApp or email team@thewellnesslondon.com or call 020 3951 3429.
References. NICE guideline NG202 on obstructive sleep apnoea, hypopnoea and obesity hypoventilation syndrome in over 16s. British Lung Foundation and NHS estimates of undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnoea prevalence in the UK. DVLA guidance, assessing fitness to drive, obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome provisions. Published evidence on associations between untreated sleep apnoea and resistant hypertension, atrial fibrillation, stroke, type 2 diabetes and road traffic collision risk. Published evidence on CPAP efficacy and adherence and on mandibular advancement devices.
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