What appliances have you tried?

There's a large list of appliances on ihatecpap.com that are alternatives to CPAP. I'm curious to know, which of those have you tried and how did they work out?

There's two in particular that interest me. First, the Full Breath appliance, which depresses the tongue to keep it from falling back. Second, the nose breath appliances, which suctions the tongue just behind the incisors.

I'm not thrilled about advancement devices due to the possibility of jaw issues. However, I'm considering replacing my existing splint with one which doesn't crowd my tongue into the back of my throat. I bought an Aveo and was adjusting to it. After a few days I was getting about 4 hours into the night before taking it off. At the end it would come off and I wouldn't even remember. Mostly I stopped because I bought it thinking it would stop clenching activity until I realized that I have the chronic low amount of clenching, rather than the walnut cracking kind. Also, it can also cause TMJ issues due to forcing the mouth open all night.

You gotta figure out if you have the double-whammy problem--that is, your problem is both the tongue falling back and blocking your airway, as well as your airway collapsing. You can find out by using an oximeter with the Aveo in place. I tried the Aveo while sitting up taking a nap and using the oximeter. Yup, the alarm went off almost immediately. That meant my airway was collapsing and I''d absolutely have to use a cpap ,and using the Aveo with the cpap will not work.

I'm considering replacing my existing splint

What are you using now?

But going back to some of your other posts I am guessing your immediate choices of action should be:

1. Go back to using a FFM if you indeed are mouthbreathing.
2. Work with a good ENT to solve your problems with nasal breathing.
3. Download the ResMed software and start studying your data daily.

That sounds like a lot but it really is not and can be done in a short period of time.

Don't need any, I'm not in De-Nile, so I chose to use a treatment that really works, XPAP! Jim

Appliances? In the kitchen? For sex??????

What are you using now?

I was using a flat plane splint for ~20 years but my dentist made me a new one recently. I don't know who makes it but it has an incline to discourage bruxing. It is deeper at the front and narrower near the back. I don't like that because it pushes my mandible back, following the slope of the incline, and in that position my front teeth lose contact with the splint. Also, I think it's designed for people with a class 1 occlusion. I have a class 3 maloclussion so my teeth meet straight on. The guard, however, is a cm or so wide so it takes up a lot of space in my mouth where my tongue would love to be. I already have a big tongue for my mouth so I feel that it's only making matters worse by displacing it backwards. However, my teeth already have a lot of damage so I don't want to sleep without it. I bought a SleepGuard and it reports about 200-300 clench events per night most nights. I also wear a hawley splint on the bottom, which takes up some space as well. At least my teeth are relatively straight.

I asked my dentist about fixing these problems but she insists that it's a fine night guard. My uncle, a dentist who made it for me, agrees. None of them is a sleep dentist though. I'm thinking about visiting Dr Rouse in San Antonio to see what he thinks and if he can do better. It's hard to find good expertise with problems like these.

1. Go back to using a FFM if you indeed are mouthbreathing.
2. Work with a good ENT to solve your problems with nasal breathing.
3. Download the ResMed software and start studying your data daily.

1. I've gone back for now. With the nasal pillows, I can breath through my nose most of the time. Without them, though, I can only really breath through my mouth.

2. I've got an ENT that I'm working with. He started me on Flonase and Levaquin for 2mo and I have an appt in 2 weeks. It's helped but not enough I think. I'll see him in 2 weeks but I think he wants to jump straight to surgery. I'd like to try a few other non-surgical options first and then will need time to figure out which surgery to do. I'm nervous that if I get the catscan now and don't do the surgery immediately, then I'll need to redo it later though. OTOH, it might reveal something really easy to fix and not your standard turbinate reduction. Thoughts?

3. I've uploaded my report here. The last two days are with FFM and all the ones before are with Swift FX nasal pillows. I didn't think much of it before but looking at it again you can see where the problem points are. Usage on 1/7 was perfect. On 1/6, there were 2 events with only 1min between them so not so bad. 1/3 - 1/5 were perfect again. 1/2 had only one break but between them was 16min - what? 12/31-1/1 were perfect again. 12/30 had 7 mask events, with 1-30min between them.

So what do you make of this data? Normal or do I have problems that need to be addressed?

I'm nervous that if I get the catscan now and don't do the surgery immediately, then I'll need to redo it later though. OTOH, it might reveal something really easy to fix and not your standard turbinate reduction. Thoughts?

Cat scan? What will they scan?

Your nasal passages all the way down to your vocal cords are easily and quickly examined with a scope. Hubby had it done twice and it took five minutes in the doc's chair.

This is an easy way to get a clear view of the septum and turbinates.

Cat scan? What will they scan?

Well, I've heard that it's to diagnose sinus disease. It was ordered using the "Stryker protocol". I get the impression that it's in preparation for surgery, to guide the instruments.

Your nasal passages all the way down to your vocal cords are easily and quickly examined with a scope. Hubby had it done twice and it took five minutes in the doc's chair.

I got a 2nd opinion from another ENT and he scoped and said he didn't think I need surgery, just to give the Flonase time to work. I think he only went down one side though. My paperwork indicates that my primary ENT will scope at the next appt.

I do feel like he's rushing to the surgery protocol. Should I just not do it a few times and push back to allow more time for discussion? By my experience, most doctors are pretty impatient and don't like when patients try and control the treatment like that. They feel like you're wasting their time, nevermind that you're paying for it!

I tried the Dental Appliance, the TAP, and found that it did not eliminate my snoring, which was my main symptom. Also, my jaw has never been entirely the same since I used that thing.