Is CPAP Forever? The Future of Sleep Apnea Treatment

[D.H.]

In this article, they are promising that CPAP will soon be replaced by newer therapies. They are suggesting that this will happen in the next few years.

I, for one, am very happy with CPAP and would not want to experiment in treating such a dangerous condition. I hope that when it's time to replace this machine, they will not try to force me to use some newfangled therapy.

Link ===> http://www.sleepdr.com/blog/is-cpap-for ... -treatment

[Julie]

They're loading the ammo, better run for it!

You talk as if Cpap were old, but do you realize it's only been around since the late 20th century and believe me the form it was in then you wouldn't have wanted. Why do you assume that new therapies will be experimental? How silly. And why would anyone force you to do anything?

[Goofproof]

In this article, they are promising that CPAP will soon be replaced by newer therapies. They are suggesting that this will happen in the next few years.

I, for one, am very happy with CPAP and would not want to experiment in treating such a dangerous condition. I hope that when it's time to replace this machine, they will not try to force me to use some newfangled therapy.

Link ===> http://www.sleepdr.com/blog/is-cpap-for ... -treatment

More stupid, brought to you by, guess who! Jim

[chunkyfrog]

As anyone able to read can tell, the "article" was in reality an advertisement, of sorts;
Mostly for the blogger. As you can see, any idiot can write a blog.
Only a few write really GOOD ones.
Duh.

[Guest]

where is pr when you need him?

[D.H.]

. . . ly. And why would anyone force you to do anything?

By "forcing" me to use a new mode of therapy, I mean that insurance might not want to pay for a new CPAP. Also, if a new therapy really catches on, CPAP might not be as popular an item as it is now, making a smaller selection and possibly a higher price (if fewer are mode).

[Julie]

Has it occurred to you that you might actually LIKE the new stuff? Be happy not to be attached to the hose and leaky masks? Sheesh!

[Pugsy]

where is pr when you need him?

Either not here yet tonight or he stuck to his word and put DH on the Foe list.

[robysue]

In this article, they are promising that CPAP will soon be replaced by newer therapies. They are suggesting that this will happen in the next few years.

I, for one, am very happy with CPAP and would not want to experiment in treating such a dangerous condition. I hope that when it's time to replace this machine, they will not try to force me to use some newfangled therapy.

Link ===> http://www.sleepdr.com/blog/is-cpap-for ... -treatment

Ah yes, the tongue zapper. It was talked about around here when I was a newbie.

I'll admit there's potential here. But there are potential problems for this becoming the standard treatment for OSA instead of a treatment for those who can't make CPAP work. They include:

• Cost. Surgery is expensive and the tongue-zapper requires the implantation of a pacemaker type device. And, of course, the battery in the pacemaker won't last forever.
• Effectiveness. Winning approval of both the FDA (which I believe is close) AND the insurance companies will require extensive testing to make sure the device is effective. Early versions were not appropriate for all OSA patients---if the OSA was not caused by the tongue collapsing into the upper airway, the device was not as effective. And figuring out where the weak link in the upper airway is located is not always easy.
• Potential for sleep disruption. The idea is to "zap" the muscles so they tighten back up whenever they collapse enough to allow the tongue to collapse into the airway. It's quite possible that for some people those "zaps" will trigger spontaneous arousals. So it's possible that you might be trading apneas for spontaneous arousals. Yes, this might be better if you have serious desats with your apneas. But if your problem is more with hypopneas with arousal, changing the cause of the arousals is not likely to actually improve your sleep.

This is not to say that I believe that CPAP will never be replaced as the gold standard for treating OSA. It more than likely will be replaced by something. It might even be replaced by the tongue zapper if all the potential problems can be solved. But it's not likely to be cheaper than CPAP for an insurance company (or Medicare or Medicaid) to pay for any time soon, and that alone will mean that it will likely take far more than the "next few years" for it to replace CPAP as the most commonly prescribed treatment for OSA.

[palerider]

where is pr when you need him?

Either not here yet tonight or he stuck to his word and put DH on the Foe list.

foe AND using foxreplace to change noise to "noise" since that's all that ever comes from that account... either stupid bullshit, or mindless unhelpful comments, or redundant obvious stuff.

and I just got tired of reading it, figured others could take up the "tell DH he's a xxxx moron" effort.

[Lucyhere]

where is pr when you need him?

Either not here yet tonight or he stuck to his word and put DH on the Foe list.

He's gonna read DH's post whether DH is on his Foe list or not.

.

[Goofproof]

Most of us are content to use the Gold Standard, however, feel free to keep eating the Lead Paint, tasty... Jim

[chunkyfrog]

I often read the posts of my foes, but only when I believe they have the potential to improve.
I sometimes even read lucy's posts, and occasionally she is not so horrible . . .

[Lucyhere]

I sometimes even read lucy's posts, and occasionally she is not so horrible . . .

Why thank you, CF. Right back attcha.

.

[grayghost4]

occasionally