New Member - Sleep Apnea Is it all mouth/neck related?

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
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billybob02
Posts: 8
Joined: Fri Nov 17, 2006 5:45 pm
Location: Orange County, CA

New Member - Sleep Apnea Is it all mouth/neck related?

Post by billybob02 » Thu Nov 23, 2006 12:43 pm

Hello All,
I have posted a few times, and I am so glade to have found a site where I can go to and seek real world insights on CPAP.

I work in the dental field, and have found that many dentist are joining in the sleep game with snore and sleep appliances. At first it was all geared towards grinding of the teeth, now they seem to be moving to address the real issue, tongue relocation during sleep.

One doctor told me several horror stories of patients that have had surgery, only to find that the primary issue for their apnea was their tongue falling back in the throat once the neck muscles relax. Of course you could have your tongue removed, no thanks, lets continue.

I am really interested in this and have set an appointment to see a leading dentist in this field - in another state that has multiple cases success with these appliances. I will keep you all posted on how it goes and if it helps.

If anyone has received treatment - please respond!

Happy Turkey Day to ALL -

BB


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Julie
Posts: 20054
Joined: Tue Feb 28, 2006 12:58 pm

Post by Julie » Thu Nov 23, 2006 12:53 pm

Hi, glad to see someone looking into it all! However, from everything I've read, and that includes hundreds or more forum postings, while the tongue-falling-back certainly seems to be a factor in many cases, there are others - e.g. 'fatty' necks (which compress airways), actual anatomical structure of individual throats and palates, etc., which have also been implicated, apart from just being overweight in many, but not all, cases. Dental devices have been tried by many people and honestly I don't think they're much of an answer to true sleep apnea from all I've heard. They may be helpful to some people, but don't really address the central issue of arrested breathing and other related conditions.

inacpapfog
Posts: 538
Joined: Tue Nov 16, 2004 6:03 pm
Location: SC

Post by inacpapfog » Thu Nov 23, 2006 3:13 pm

While I do not believe that a dental appliance will solve every OSA case, I'm sure that new developments could lead to more persons being help by such a device. I am always interested in hearing of new products being developed to address sleep apnea.

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Goofproof
Posts: 16087
Joined: Mon Dec 05, 2005 3:16 pm
Location: Central Indiana, USA

Post by Goofproof » Thu Nov 23, 2006 5:47 pm

I have found a guart of Snake Oil, and a Remstar APAP, gives good treatment. I could have probably done as good without the Snake Oil, but the dentist made me such a good price on it, I bought the whole case. Jim

Use data to optimize your xPAP treatment!

"The art of medicine consists in amusing the patient while nature cures the disease." Voltaire