Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Robert Conner on April 20, 2010 at 7:15pm

Hi, My name is Robert and I have had this terrible illness since I was around 1 1/2, I had "night Terrors" when I was a kid, in my opinion due to sleep apnea, that continue to this day, I'm 43 now and cannot use the sleep mask because I also have Diabetes and recently diagnosed Sjrogren's Syndrome which has compromised my face and my teeth, therefor I cannot use the sleep mask because of the drying out on my Already extremely dry mouth, due to diabetes and Sjogren's, also, the Sjrogren's has altered my sleep apnea and throat to the point where my breathing stops on the OUT breath and not the IN like is was all my life.

I don't know what to do, I can bearly sleep at all now, I am up most of the night till 8 or 10 am and only sleep a little between 10 am and 3 pm, I'm at the end of my ropes and can't get any doctors to help me at all! in my case, the doctors I've seen have been completely useless and do not care if I die from this or not, all they care about is themselves and practiing defensive medicine so they won't get sued for their incompitence!

Somebody help me! Please!


My idea to cure sleep apnea is... I wonder if there is a way to install a small peice of material in the obstructed area of the throat where the individuals blockage is, than can be electricly stimulated, and when the material is stimulated it flexes, stifens up, thus keeping the airway open.

I have seen such material on G4's AOTS "robot report", I know something like this would work! if someone could contact Darpa or some robotics company that works with small material type robots.

Sincerely,
Robert

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Permalink Reply by Candice Craig on April 21, 2010 at 3:30pm

There are dental devices that can be used for very mild sleep apnea (AHI 5-15 events/hr). The only draw back is, it is not covered by insurance. Please talk to a dentist about the pro's and con's of these devices.
There is also the CPAP Pro No Mask. I have 3 patients who currently use/have used them. Only 1 out of the 3 actually like it. They can be purchased on line, but there is some molding and adjustments involved.
Most patients that I setup with CPAP/BIPAP machines are in their 30's - 70's. By this age they have suffered health issues such as strokes, heart attacks, HTN etc., or are just tired of living with chronic fatigue and lack of energy and are looking for releif. Most patients, no matter the age, are reluctant to use this therapy because of the percieved restriction and change of sleep habit. There are many masks designed to help with the transition into cpap therapy. One in particular that I have had great sucess with is the Swift FX. This mask is very lightweight and comfortable on the face.

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Permalink Reply by Carl on April 21, 2010 at 3:53pm

Robert,

I thought about this a few months ago and have been on a quest to find out about this. It does not appear that anyone is doing anything like this anywhere. Everyone has the thought - just use CPAP - it's what everyone uses. The problem is that most Doctors don't really care about treating the patient as much as how much time will you take versus how much will they get in reimbursement. There are ALWAYS exceptions to the rule, but face it, a doctor has bills to pay, an office to run, secretaries/receptionists/nurses to pay, and wants to earn a living himself. But, no matter how you look at it, we are getting ripped off... Here's an example:

1) X ray - Bill $75.00 - insurance agreed pricing - $32.56
2) Labwork - Bill $161.00 - insurance agreed pricing - $123.70
3) Labwork - $90.00 - insurance agreed pricing - $40.55

Total $326 vs $196.81 - Can you believe that?! These are rel numbers and all from one day of labwork/testing.

Look at how much this hospital screws people that don't have insurance. This is borderline criminal. THIS is the kind of thing that health care reform should fix - what occurred is a travesty.

Carl

Robert Conner said:

Hi, My name is Robert and I have had this terrible illness since I was around 1 1/2, I had "night Terrors" when I was a kid, in my opinion due to sleep apnea, that continue to this day, I'm 43 now and cannot use the sleep mask because I also have Diabetes and recently diagnosed Sjrogren's Syndrome which has compromised my face and my teeth, therefor I cannot use the sleep mask because of the drying out on my Already extremely dry mouth, due to diabetes and Sjogren's, also, the Sjrogren's has altered my sleep apnea and throat to the point where my breathing stops on the OUT breath and not the IN like is was all my life.

I don't know what to do, I can bearly sleep at all now, I am up most of the night till 8 or 10 am and only sleep a little between 10 am and 3 pm, I'm at the end of my ropes and can't get any doctors to help me at all! in my case, the doctors I've seen have been completely useless and do not care if I die from this or not, all they care about is themselves and practiing defensive medicine so they won't get sued for their incompitence!

Somebody help me! Please!


My idea to cure sleep apnea is... I wonder if there is a way to install a small peice of material in the obstructed area of the throat where the individuals blockage is, than can be electricly stimulated, and when the material is stimulated it flexes, stifens up, thus keeping the airway open.

I have seen such material on G4's AOTS "robot report", I know something like this would work! if someone could contact Darpa or some robotics company that works with small material type robots.

Sincerely,
Robert

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Katrina Levine on April 21, 2010 at 4:26pm

The good new is that the oral appliance is now an FDA approved medical device, so there actually has been some success in getting insurance coverage. Of course it varies, based on the plan. It must go through your medical insurance, not dental. There may be some pre-qualification, ie inability to tolerate CPAP, etc. In my opinion it would be helpful to see a Dentist that is Board Certified in sleep, as I would think they would be more savvy in getting it approved. Good luck :)


Candice Craig said:

There are dental devices that can be used for very mild sleep apnea (AHI 5-15 events/hr). The only draw back is, it is not covered by insurance. Please talk to a dentist about the pro's and con's of these devices.
There is also the CPAP Pro No Mask. I have 3 patients who currently use/have used them. Only 1 out of the 3 actually like it. They can be purchased on line, but there is some molding and adjustments involved.
Most patients that I setup with CPAP/BIPAP machines are in their 30's - 70's. By this age they have suffered health issues such as strokes, heart attacks, HTN etc., or are just tired of living with chronic fatigue and lack of energy and are looking for releif. Most patients, no matter the age, are reluctant to use this therapy because of the percieved restriction and change of sleep habit. There are many masks designed to help with the transition into cpap therapy. One in particular that I have had great sucess with is the Swift FX. This mask is very lightweight and comfortable on the face.

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Permalink Reply by Sue on April 21, 2010 at 9:39pm

Thanks alot for the information. I will have to see if our insurance will cover this.

Katrina Levine said:

The good new is that the oral appliance is now an FDA approved medical device, so there actually has been some success in getting insurance coverage. Of course it varies, based on the plan. It must go through your medical insurance, not dental. There may be some pre-qualification, ie inability to tolerate CPAP, etc. In my opinion it would be helpful to see a Dentist that is Board Certified in sleep, as I would think they would be more savvy in getting it approved. Good luck :)


Candice Craig said:

There are dental devices that can be used for very mild sleep apnea (AHI 5-15 events/hr). The only draw back is, it is not covered by insurance. Please talk to a dentist about the pro's and con's of these devices.
There is also the CPAP Pro No Mask. I have 3 patients who currently use/have used them. Only 1 out of the 3 actually like it. They can be purchased on line, but there is some molding and adjustments involved.
Most patients that I setup with CPAP/BIPAP machines are in their 30's - 70's. By this age they have suffered health issues such as strokes, heart attacks, HTN etc., or are just tired of living with chronic fatigue and lack of energy and are looking for releif. Most patients, no matter the age, are reluctant to use this therapy because of the percieved restriction and change of sleep habit. There are many masks designed to help with the transition into cpap therapy. One in particular that I have had great sucess with is the Swift FX. This mask is very lightweight and comfortable on the face.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Candice Craig on April 22, 2010 at 9:11am

Thank you Katrina for the info. I am going to find out a little bit more about the dental devices because I have a lot of patients who ask about them :)

Katrina Levine said:

The good new is that the oral appliance is now an FDA approved medical device, so there actually has been some success in getting insurance coverage. Of course it varies, based on the plan. It must go through your medical insurance, not dental. There may be some pre-qualification, ie inability to tolerate CPAP, etc. In my opinion it would be helpful to see a Dentist that is Board Certified in sleep, as I would think they would be more savvy in getting it approved. Good luck :)


Candice Craig said:

There are dental devices that can be used for very mild sleep apnea (AHI 5-15 events/hr). The only draw back is, it is not covered by insurance. Please talk to a dentist about the pro's and con's of these devices.
There is also the CPAP Pro No Mask. I have 3 patients who currently use/have used them. Only 1 out of the 3 actually like it. They can be purchased on line, but there is some molding and adjustments involved.
Most patients that I setup with CPAP/BIPAP machines are in their 30's - 70's. By this age they have suffered health issues such as strokes, heart attacks, HTN etc., or are just tired of living with chronic fatigue and lack of energy and are looking for releif. Most patients, no matter the age, are reluctant to use this therapy because of the percieved restriction and change of sleep habit. There are many masks designed to help with the transition into cpap therapy. One in particular that I have had great sucess with is the Swift FX. This mask is very lightweight and comfortable on the face.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Kim Walters on April 23, 2010 at 9:00pm

I could not tolerate my CPAP due to a lot of different issues, and went many years untreated. Last year I had a TAP appliance made for me by a Dental Sleep Center. That is all they do. It works!!! It took some adjustment but I really like it. No one knows you are wearing it, I can yell at my teenagers to go to bed, and can even have a drink of water if need be. I just had a terrible cold, and was able to wear it through some terrible nasal congestion. I do NOT use a CPAP and only wear this appliance. It works!

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Permalink Reply by Jo E on May 1, 2010 at 6:51pm

Have you considered sleeping in a semi-upright position? In Thomas Jefferson's era, it was considered unhealthy to sleep laying down. The force of gravity works against your airway staying open when you are laying down, especially on your back. If you sleep in a upright to semi-upright position, gravity may works against you less. I use a wedge pillow that I purchased online to help me with back pain. I think if I would have had it before I had surgeries, it would have helped me at least somewhat. I have had a number of surgeries that mostly took care of my OSA, but the wedge pillow I purchased to help with the pain in my back has added to the effectiveness of my surgeries.

Robert Conner said:

Hi, My name is Robert and I have had this terrible illness since I was around 1 1/2, I had "night Terrors" when I was a kid, in my opinion due to sleep apnea, that continue to this day, I'm 43 now and cannot use the sleep mask because I also have Diabetes and recently diagnosed Sjrogren's Syndrome which has compromised my face and my teeth, therefor I cannot use the sleep mask because of the drying out on my Already extremely dry mouth, due to diabetes and Sjogren's, also, the Sjrogren's has altered my sleep apnea and throat to the point where my breathing stops on the OUT breath and not the IN like is was all my life.

I don't know what to do, I can bearly sleep at all now, I am up most of the night till 8 or 10 am and only sleep a little between 10 am and 3 pm, I'm at the end of my ropes and can't get any doctors to help me at all! in my case, the doctors I've seen have been completely useless and do not care if I die from this or not, all they care about is themselves and practiing defensive medicine so they won't get sued for their incompitence!

Somebody help me! Please!


My idea to cure sleep apnea is... I wonder if there is a way to install a small peice of material in the obstructed area of the throat where the individuals blockage is, than can be electricly stimulated, and when the material is stimulated it flexes, stifens up, thus keeping the airway open.

I have seen such material on G4's AOTS "robot report", I know something like this would work! if someone could contact Darpa or some robotics company that works with small material type robots.

Sincerely,
Robert

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jo E on May 1, 2010 at 6:54pm

I tried Breatherite nasal strips shortly before I battled my PCP to order a sleep study for me. Breatherite made my OSA symptoms far worse.

Robert Hewett Sr said:

Try the breathing strips, such as "Breathrite" that athletes wear. I am 76 years old and could not tolerate the masks.
The strips stopped me from snoring and greatly improved my sleep. they are not 100% effective in controlling sleep
apnea, but neither are the masks. The strips have made my sleep much better. There are a few brands, including
some store brands that are cheaper. The main problem with them is keeping them in place all night. One side
may come loose. The cheaper brands are worse at this. I put paper tape over mine and have little trouble with
them coming loose during the night.

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