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Oral appliance therapy is an effective treatment of mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea and snoring. Oral appliance therapy:
- Helps reduce the number of apneas and hypopneas during sleep1,
- Improves reported sleep quality and improves daytime sleepiness levels2,
- Lowers blood pressure3,
- Is preferred over CPAP4, and
- Has high treatment adherence and tolerance.
Oral appliance therapy is recommended for patients:
- With mild to moderate OSA who prefer oral appliances over CPAP6,
- With severe OSA who do not respond to CPAP, who fail treatment attempts with CPAP, or who fail lifestyle changes7,
- With primary snoring8,
- Whose surgeries were unsuccessful, or
- Who need a treatment adjunct while traveling.
In obstructive sleep apnea, the airway collapses either partially or fully. Oral appliances hold your jaw in a forward position to keep your tongue from obstructing the upper airway and to increase the volume of the airway.
More infomation available at:
- www.aadsm.org
- www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/sleep-apnea
- www.mayoclinic.com/health/obstructive-sleep-apnea/DS00968
1. Ferguson, K. The role of oral appliance therapy in the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea. Clinics in Chest Medicine, 2003.
2. Oral Appliances: A Review. Sleep, 2006.
3. Gotsopolous et al. Oral Appliance Therapy Reduces Blood Pressure in OSA. Sleep, 2004.
4. Lim et al. Oral appliances for obstructive sleep apnea. The Cochrane Collaboration, 2009.
5. Oral Appliances: A Review. Sleep, 2006
6. Practice Parameters for Oral Appliances- AASM Practice Parameters. Sleep, 2006.
7. Practice Parameters for Oral Appliances- AASM Practice Parameters. Sleep, 2006.
8. Practice Parameters for Oral Appliances- AASM Practice Parameters. Sleep, 2006.

