OSA can be fixed by a Chinstrap says 4 doctors

[Tielman]

Ran across this in an Advertisement on CNN.COM today for (you guessed it) a chin strap to fix your sleep apnea. To my limited mind, the study referenced (if you can call it that) was very flawed. Thought you might might want to know what 4 Doctors believe (yes, they gave them sleep studies pre and post, and initially provided CPAP, but the patient discontinued usage).

A chinstrap alone improved severe obstructive sleep apnea as well as or better than the use of CPAP

Treatment of Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome with a Chinstrap
Robert D. Vorona, M.D.,1 J. Catesby Ware, Ph.D.,1 John T. Sinacori, M.D.,2 Melvin L. Ford, III, D.D.S.,2 and J. Parker Cross, M.D.3
1.Division of Sleep Medicine
2.Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
3.Department of Otolaryngology; Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA

http://www.aralifestyle.com/article2.as ... 2837-APP11
http://www.mysnoringsolution.com
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2556917/

Disclosure Statement
This was not an industry supported study. The authors have indicated no financial conflicts of interest.

[Janknitz]

It is not wise to extrapolate this single case study to assume that the wearing of a chin strap will help everyone. The authors themselves state "In sum, this case report indicates that a simple and inexpensive chinstrap deserves further investigation as a modality for the treatment of OSAS." FURTHER INVESTIGATION is needed! They also admit that it was not a "double blind study" (gold standard in medical research) and suggest that any further study be done "blinded".

In other words, DON'T give up your CPAP for a chin strap based on this one article.

[roster]

I think Tielman was complaining about the ridiculous ad.

[Janknitz]

I think Tielman was complaining about the ridiculous ad.

My humble apologies, I will edit my response, but I just don't want anyone to go giving up their machine because they have a chinstrap!

[roster]

Well I did not mean to stop you from beating up on Tielman.

Maybe he was too subtle in his complaint?

[Janknitz]

Maybe I'm too tired to be posting--tough day at work

[Goofproof]

I'll bet those 4 doctors don't make a profit from chin straps. What do you call a Doctor that is in the last place in his classes, Doctor!!! Jim

[Tielman]

Well I did not mean to stop you from beating up on Tielman.

Maybe he was too subtle in his complaint?

I didn't think he was beating me up. I totally agree with him, I thought the "study" was mostly pure BS not worth the print, especially for the journal it was in.

What got me was that the chinstrap folks are trying to use this "study" as argument that you don't need CPAP treatment (ridiculous, especially since the person in the study USED a CPAP machine for part of the "study").

[Joe50]

Taking 10000 mg of phenobarbital plus wrapping your head in plastic also cures sleep apnea. I base that on a study done a few years back by the cult leader and his minions who planned to be picked up by the mothership. The study showed that none of the the people in the group suffered from OSA after this one time treatment. Not sure if they made it to Jupiter? Maybe another study is needed on the jupiter thing. Nan Nu Nan Nu.

[SleepingUgly]

Actually, I think there can be something to do this, for some people. Where is that citation that I keep pulling out about nasal vs. oral breathing, and how oral breathing facilitates collapse of the airway? Ahh, here it is:

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=52604&st=0&sk=t&sd= ... 15#p486137

In theory, for those whose airway is collapsing due to mouth opening, shutting the mouth should help reduce the airway collapse.