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Permalink Reply by Steven Y. Park, MD on September 22, 2009 at 12:52pm

Are you sure you have the right website? The link you promoted goes to an oral appliance site. There are various chin straps that are promoted for snoring and sleep apnea, which I'm somewhat suspicious of.

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Permalink Reply by susan mccord on September 22, 2009 at 1:02pm

Dr. Park--no, I didn't have the right website-the one I quoted sends you to a dental appliance site.

I haven't gotten back to the original site I found yet. I found another one ARAlifestyle.com that seems a little more comprehensive and there are a couple of others I want to check out. The way this chin strap is presented though, is a huge invitation/solution/cure for OSA that anyone resistive to further testing or CPAP tx if diagnosed would jump all over using it.

My question is what could happen to me, for instance, or anyone diagnosed and in need of CPAP, if I were to abandon medically Rx'd tx for this seemingly simple way of managing OSA????? It just seems seductive to people who don't have enough information, which is practically everybody out here!!

DON'T GET ME WRONG--I'M NOT CONTEMPLATING D/C'ing CPAP--NO WAY. I'M JUST CONCERNED ABOUT PEOPLE WHO MAY BE SYMPTOMATIC AND THINK THAT IF THEY CAN STOP THE SNORING THEY'LL BE SAFE.

IS THAT TRUE?????

Susan McCord

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Permalink Reply by susan mccord on September 22, 2009 at 1:23pm

Dr. Park, I guess my bottom-line question, in a nutshell, is if you just stop the snoring, does that prevent OSA from occurring or progressing?

It DOES seem like snoring is presented as the primary sx of undiagnosed apnea.....is it actually a sx only or is it part of the disease??

Susan McCord

Steven Y. Park, MD said:

Are you sure you have the right website? The link you promoted goes to an oral appliance site. There are various chin straps that are promoted for snoring and sleep apnea, which I'm somewhat suspicious of.

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Permalink Reply by Steven Y. Park, MD on September 22, 2009 at 2:04pm

In general, the answer to your last questions is no. If you're not snoring, you may not be breathing. We know that a majority of severe snorers have undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnea. My feeling is that all the various gadgets and devices out there for snoring may work (usually only sometimes in some people), but when it does work, it only delays getting diagnosed and treated for OSA.

Snoring is one of the signs of sleep apnea, but again, you don't have to snore to have significant sleep apnea. Many of my patients are young, thin, and don't snore. Treating the snoring alone in general won't cure sleep apnea.

Studies have also shown that objectively, nasal dilator strips, throat sprays and pillows don't make a significant difference in treating sleep apnea. Take for instance, Breathe Rite Strips, or ear plugs. It may help literally "cover things up," but you'll end up putting off seeing a doctor about it. It's so frustrating that despite all the information out there about the dangers of snoring and sleep apnea, the vast majority of people are still in the dark. It seems that the advertisers and marketers have much more time and power to influence your health decisions, rather than your doctor.

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Permalink Reply by susan mccord on September 22, 2009 at 2:55pm

I agree about the enormous lack of info out--it's shocking. I was diagnosed with CAD 4 years ago, have really excellent care, and no one's EVER mentioned sleep apnea to me. However, my (young) cardiologist is the one who referred me to neuro for sleep study!! I didn't know that was the reason though, at the time.

That was my thought, that using all these marketed items might mask apnea sx to the point where they get to severe level, which is where I was when diagnosed 6/09. I've had sx since the early 70's, I've now learned, and I'm now 67 years old. I was young and slender at the time! Still have normal weight but it finally (apparently) caught up with me last spring. I've been c/o exhaustion for many years, been treated for everything under the sun. No mention of apnea, ever.

I'm constantly encouraging my friends who have classic sx of apnea to check into sleep studies now, but most of them ignore me. It's a mystery to me that it's not taken more seriously. The thing that absolutely opened my eyes was that video Mike posted on SG "This one's hard to watch", with the young man who was videotaped with severe apnea. God, it was awful. I haven't missed one night of CPAP ever since, nor will I ever!! You're right, people, even many MD's, really don't get it.....
Thank you so much for your input. Your presence on this site is a blessing to all of us, and it never ceases to amaze me the level of commitment you have to your patients, even us non-paying ones!!! It's remarkable. And admirable.....

Susan McCord :-)

Steven Y. Park, MD said:

In general, the answer to your last questions is no. If you're not snoring, you may not be breathing. We know that a majority of severe snorers have undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnea. My feeling is that all the various gadgets and devices out there for snoring may work (usually only sometimes in some people), but when it does work, it only delays getting diagnosed and treated for OSA.

Snoring is one of the signs of sleep apnea, but again, you don't have to snore to have significant sleep apnea. Many of my patients are young, thin, and don't snore. Treating the snoring alone in general won't cure sleep apnea.

Studies have also shown that objectively, nasal dilator strips, throat sprays and pillows don't make a significant difference in treating sleep apnea. Take for instance, Breathe Rite Strips, or ear plugs. It may help literally "cover things up," but you'll end up putting off seeing a doctor about it. It's so frustrating that despite all the information out there about the dangers of snoring and sleep apnea, the vast majority of people are still in the dark. It seems that the advertisers and marketers have much more time and power to influence your health decisions, rather than your doctor.

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Permalink Reply by denise exhausted on September 22, 2009 at 3:17pm

breath rite strips with cpap aid in opening nostrils to allow me to breath better through my nose while using cpap therapy

Steven Y. Park, MD said:

In general, the answer to your last questions is no. If you're not snoring, you may not be breathing. We know that a majority of severe snorers have undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnea. My feeling is that all the various gadgets and devices out there for snoring may work (usually only sometimes in some people), but when it does work, it only delays getting diagnosed and treated for OSA.

Snoring is one of the signs of sleep apnea, but again, you don't have to snore to have significant sleep apnea. Many of my patients are young, thin, and don't snore. Treating the snoring alone in general won't cure sleep apnea.

Studies have also shown that objectively, nasal dilator strips, throat sprays and pillows don't make a significant difference in treating sleep apnea. Take for instance, Breathe Rite Strips, or ear plugs. It may help literally "cover things up," but you'll end up putting off seeing a doctor about it. It's so frustrating that despite all the information out there about the dangers of snoring and sleep apnea, the vast majority of people are still in the dark. It seems that the advertisers and marketers have much more time and power to influence your health decisions, rather than your doctor.

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Permalink Reply by susan mccord on September 22, 2009 at 3:43pm

Hi Denise--now THAT makes sense to me. If you're on CPAP and the strips help you breathe better, that's the hot ticket! I might try that myself!!

My concerns are centered around the "stop snoring" marketing that's done that may influence someone who really needs treatment for sleep apnea to opt for an over-the-counter "solution"/"cure" rather than seek medical attention. I also wonder if someone who's having dificulty managing CPAP, especially early on, might d/c tx and opt for something simple, thinking that it would be just as useful. Meanwhile their apnea would be progressing to a more critical level.

There's so little accurate information out there, and so MUCH inaccurate or misleading info re: "treatments" for sleep apnea--it's kind of unnerving. We need to launch a serious campaign to get the word out.....the TRUTH out...........

There was a time when I was so miserable from starting CPAP that, if I hadn't had SleepGuide to support me through that period, I might have fallen for some of that stuff. I believed, at the time, that I'd NEVER be able to handle it. **I can and I do!! And now I wouldn't even CONSIDER lying down to sleep without the infernal thing! I'd heard people describe their CPAP as "my friend that's keeping me alive"--frankly, I thought (at the time) that they were nuts. But now I FEEL THE SAME WAY!!!

I'm glad you're sticking with your treatment and, at the same time, finding your own individual ways of coping with the management of YOUR particular concerns. As I said, that makes perfect sense to me, and I applaud you for it. I also thank you for the tip re: using Breathe Right along with!!! lol That's one of the really great things about SG--there's always something to learn and everyone contributes even when they aren't aware of it..

Susan McCord :-)


denise exhausted said:

breath rite strips with cpap aid in opening nostrils to allow me to breath better through my nose while using cpap therapy

Steven Y. Park, MD said:

In general, the answer to your last questions is no. If you're not snoring, you may not be breathing. We know that a majority of severe snorers have undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnea. My feeling is that all the various gadgets and devices out there for snoring may work (usually only sometimes in some people), but when it does work, it only delays getting diagnosed and treated for OSA.

Snoring is one of the signs of sleep apnea, but again, you don't have to snore to have significant sleep apnea. Many of my patients are young, thin, and don't snore. Treating the snoring alone in general won't cure sleep apnea.

Studies have also shown that objectively, nasal dilator strips, throat sprays and pillows don't make a significant difference in treating sleep apnea. Take for instance, Breathe Rite Strips, or ear plugs. It may help literally "cover things up," but you'll end up putting off seeing a doctor about it. It's so frustrating that despite all the information out there about the dangers of snoring and sleep apnea, the vast majority of people are still in the dark. It seems that the advertisers and marketers have much more time and power to influence your health decisions, rather than your doctor.

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