ORAL DEVICE FOR OBSTRUCTIVE SLEEP APNEA

Oral appliances are notorious for aggravating/causing problems with
the temporomandibular joint.
I had a colleague with TMJ--her pain was unrelenting.
I could hear her moans over my headphones--heartbreaking.
Something I would never risk.

ozij wrote: ↑

Thu May 04, 2023 9:23 pm

As far is I'm concerned, the first reason not to use a MAD is that you can't track its effects on the quality of your breathing.

Fair criticism of the MAD. Ideally, once the MAD is titrated, the sleep study is repeated to determine its efficacy. Although, your point still stands true.

Compliance is the unequivocal determinant. PAP is the best intervention, but there are people who cannot tolerate or refuse to use PAP. In these patients, MAD is the logical next step.

Here's an analogy: junk/fast foods = no treatment. grilled chicken & French fries with soda = MAD. Kale, nuts, berries, fish, veggies, and only water = PAP. It's irrefutable that the best diet consists of superfoods, fish, vegetables, and water; but, if you're not going to stick with it indefinitely, then it doesn't matter if it's the best diet.

I'll give you my 2 cents on an oral appliance:
I lost 90 pounds and I did another sleep test which resulted in me being classified as mild sleep apnea.
I went to a dentist who fitted my jaw with an oral appliance. He told me these type of devices work for 80% of his patients
1) My jaw hurt using it
2) I took it in for a sleep study and the sleep doctor said the device had no effect on my sleeping.
I went back to the dentist and asked him how many of his patients did a sleep study with their oral appliance and he admitted it wasn't covered by insurance.
So the dentist was only getting good feedback from the patients (After they spent $1000k on the device) But they never went in for a sleep study to verify it was actually working.

My conclusion:
When it was all said and done, CPAP was less of a hassle than the oral appliance and much more effective.

jojopuppyfish wrote: ↑

Wed May 10, 2023 4:59 am

My conclusion:
When it was all said and done, CPAP was less of a hassle than the oral appliance and much more effective.

And provides measurable feedback on the effectiveness.