What is Oral Appliance Therapy?

Oral appliance therapy for snoring/obstructive sleep apnea attempts to assist breathing during sleep by keeping the tongue and jaw in a forward position during sleeping hours.  Oral appliance therapy has effectively eliminated snoring and treated mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea in many patients.

Oral appliance therapy treats, but does not cure snoring or obstructive sleep apnea, and therefore, must be worn each night to be effective.  Snoring may develop into obstructive sleep apnea, and it is possible that the appliance may not maintain its effectiveness over time.

How effective are oral appliances?

As with all treatments, not everyone gets the same benefit from oral appliances. For some, the obstructive sleep apnea and snoring go away completely, while for other people, other forms of treatment are needed. Oral appliances are more likely to work if you have mild or moderate sleep apnea. If your sleep apnea gets better when you lie on your side (compared to when you lie on your back) and if you are not overweight, you are also more likely to benefit from this appliance. If you have central sleep apnea (a less common condition than obstructive sleep apnea), then oral appliances are unlikely to be helpful. Until you have been properly fitted for an oral appliance and tried it, no one can know how well it will work for you.

Does the appliance need to be specially fitted for me?

Each person has a different mouth and jaw shape, so you should have the oral appliance made to fit you. We will take an impression of your teeth and a special bite and send it to a lab for the appliance to be made. This usually takes a few weeks. When the appliance is fitted into your mouth, it will be adjusted so that it moves your jaw forward to a position that will be effective but is still comfortable. The device may have a screw adjustment to allow further fine tuning of the appliance’s position in your mouth, over the next few weeks. We supervise this adjustment. After the appliance is fitted, follow-up visits will be needed.

NIGHTLASE ™

Nightlase ™ treatment helps reducing snoring and sleep-disordered breathing and their side effects by non-surgically opening the airway, reducing its collapsibility and or retraining the musculature.  Nightlase ™ uses gentle laser energy to rejuvenate soft tissues of the airway causing a tightening effect helping to keep the airway open.

The Nightlase ™ treatment is strictly a therapy to help maintain a more open airway during sleep and daytime hours.  It is not meant to be cure snoring or sleep-disordered breathing. Due to patient variability the treatment results may last from 6-12 months before requiring some maintenance treatment.  (Snorers often need maintenance every 12 months and patients with OSA often need maintenance every 6 months).

Over time, with no treatment, simple snoring may develop into sleep apnea or other types of sleep-disordered breathing.   These conditions may also become worse.  Therefore, it is important to be screened yearly.  If unusual symptoms occur, you are advised to schedule an office visit to evaluate the situation.

Introducing eXciteOSA

eXciteOSA is the world’s first daytime therapy that targets the root cause of mild obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and snoring, rather than simply relieving symptoms.

eXciteOSA uses an electrical current to stimulate and improve muscle function of the tongue.  Improvement of muscle function prevents the upper airway tissue from collapsing, keeping the upper airway open during sleep.  This prevents snoring, increases the intake of oxygen and improves the quality of sleep.

Mild OSA and Snoring

Quality sleep is vitally important for good health and well-being.  It allows the body to rest, recharge and repair itself.

Snoring is the most common cause of sleep deprivation, affected around 1 in every 3 people, causing excessive tiredness and poor concentration, and having detrimental effects on their partner.

Snoring doesn’t just deprive the body of quality sleep; it can also deprive the body of oxygen and is often the first stage of mild OSA, where a person temporarily stops breathing during sleep due to a blocked upper airway.

Mild OSA and snoring are caused by over-relaxation of the muscles in the throat, causing the tongue to fall back in the mouth, partially blocking the upper airway.  The snoring sound is generated by the mouth and throat soft tissue vibration.

Clinically proven

eXciteOSA has been clinically proven to improve the quality of sleep be reducing mild OSA and snoring significantly, when used for 20 minutes, 1 time each day for 6 week.  Thereafter, 2-3 20 minute sessions are required each week to maintain your progress.