Alternative to CPAP

I am new to this forum and I have to share a discovery which will help some people who are deciding how to treat their sleep apnea. I have moderate sleep apnea (determined through an audio recording) so I went to a sleep doctor, then a sleep lab, and the results were inconclusive because I slept lightly for one hour. Frustrated at not getting results and unwilling to take a second test because my insurance doesn't cover it, I set out to treat the problem myself. Assuming that my case is a result of the jaw and tongue retracting to close off my throat during sleep, I did the following:

I went to an athletic supply store and purchased a plastic mouth guard used by football players. I molded it deep to my upper and lower teeth. Then I carved away most of the outer wall all around, especially in the upper front.
After that I went to a fabric supply store an purchased three feet of wide elastic band material, and made a chin strap - two closed loops attached perpendicular to each other so that one loop serves as a headband and the other loops under the chin and over the top of the head. I used velcro to attach and adjust the chin loop. In preparation for sleeping, I use a denture cream on ALL the upper and lower molar surfaces on the mouth guard, and hold the guard motionless in my mouth for ten minutes with the chin strap in place.

The result is very succesful and restful sleep for me. My jaw does not slip during the night and this keeps the airway open. There is a disadvantage where if the nose is plugged the device cannot be used. However I am working on a way to insert holes in the mouthpiece to allow air to flow through the mouth. Has anyone tried a similar method of treatment?

How do you know that it's truely an alternative?? Sounds like you didn't have a followup PSG

There are several devices that may be similar to yours that are sold by some dentists; some are sold for snoring and some are sold for sleep apnea..

An audio recording does not count as a diagnostic device. How do you know that you have sleep apnea? How do you know if the device is effective at reducing your sleep apnea?

AT the very least you need to get a pulse oximeter to make sure your blood oxygen is staying above 90%, otherwise you could be doing more harm than good with your device. Also, insurance will sometimes pay for a trial with an autopap at home if the psg was unsuccessful. You need to work your system, whatever it is. You are paying insurance premiums, you need to make them take care of your health.

jen

wbcook, I work in a sleep lab and frankly.........This is crazy talk! An audio recording proves little, except maybe you snore. A spouse might be able to verify that when you're not snoring, you're not breathing, but this is of little use diagnostically.
Why were you only able to "sleep lightly for one hour"? A good sleep lab could at least talk to your primary care physician and get them pointed in the right direction. Of course, there ARE labs that are only out to make a buck. Bottom line is, if they couldn't make a diagnosis, then they better not have charged you for the study (full price, anyway. There IS a small "modifier 52" charge that they could have hit you with, but it's less than 200$ - usually doesn't even cover the wages of the sleep tech for the night). Be sure to insist on a lab that has registered sleep techs (RPSGT's) working there. Ask questions. Demand to know what's going on.
Your solution is innovative, but......most airway obstruction involves the soft tissue in the throat, not just the tongue and jaw. Even if your device works "a little", it may not be keeping your airway patent all the time. Keep working at it.....It's your health you're investing in!

For myself I would trust an audio in treating my sleep apnea -- and how would you determine if it was mild, moderate, or severe with just an audio recording? For years my husband has been telling me something was wrong -- that I would stop breathing when I slept -- my snoring was bothering him -- he would literally wake me up some nights so I would start breathing. I ignored him and told him I was sleeping fine -- there were other reasons I was always so tired. I did not accept his word that I had sleep apnea and diagnose myself -- after years of feeling exhausted and my health being affected -- I went to my primary care doctor and she took it from there -- ordered the sleep study and second opinion from a sleep doctor. I have severe OSA. I don't feel that you can self-diagnose this problem without some accurate data behind it so that you make informed decisions about treatment options.

I agree with most of the comments to my post.

As for the audio recording, I noticed that after about one hour of sleep, there would begin one or two very loud snores, following by a partial snore sound. After that there was near total silence. This happened several times during the night. Right after some episodes, I would wake up. I noticed also that it was much better to wake up several times during the night than not at all. I always felt better the following day.

It is true that an accurate diagnosis of anoxemia during sleep should be done in a sleep lab, but I experimented with an idea and it definitely had an immediate positive result in all my waking hours. I have much more energy, alertness, and endurance throughout the day. Sometimes your own sense of how you feel is a good diagnostic tool. For those of us who live alone, it would be hard to suspect one has a sleeping problem by any other way. By the way I feel today, like anyone else I would never think to see a sleep physician.

Also, before going to the sleep lab I was examined by the sleep physician as expected. My throat is clear from natural obstructions, and I am not overweight at all.

Obtaining an oxygen reading is a good idea. I suppose I can rent some equipment to perform that test.

If I have to get a CPAP machine, I am looking for a Respironics Remstar C-flex with heated humidifier. From what I read, they are quite comfortable to use.

Ask your family doctor about loaning you an Oximeter overnite.