Tongue Implant To Cure Obstructive Sleep Apnea

UNIVERSITY OF REGENSBURG, REGENSBURG, BAVARIA.The implantable tongue provides continuous positive air pressure. It prevents the relaxed tongue from moving backwards to the posterior pharyngeal wall. This has proven to be an excellent treatment for obstructive sleep apnea.

24% of traffic accidents in Bavaria is caused by sleepiness. There are many people who suffer from daytime sleepiness and a lot of disorders caused by sleep apnea. This condition is becoming rampant in Asian and Western countries.

Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder accompanied by abnormal pauses in breathing during sleep. An apnea is called to each pause in breathing. It usually lasts from a few seconds to a few minutes. This can be diagnosed with a test called polysomnogram. There are three types of sleep apnea namely: central, obstructive and complex or mixed sleep apnea. This condition affects both adults and children. Usually patients complain about excessive daytime sleepiness.

The most common sleep disorder breathing is the obstructive sleep apnea. During sleep the muscle tone of the body is relaxed. The human airway has collapsible walls made from soft tissues that may obstruct breathing when sleeping. Studies show that more men suffer from this condition than women and children. Factors that affect this condition are age, smoking and weight increase. There are people with low muscle tone and soft tissue walls that are at high risk with this condition.

The typical symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea are daytime sleepiness, loud snoring and sleep restlessness. Some of the treatments conducted to cure it is lifestyle change. There is a need to lose weight, avoid alcohol and quit smoking. Sleeping in a reclined position preferably 30 degrees provides comfort.

The silicone tongue implant does not impair the normal functionality of the tongue. In fact, patients who have tried this treatment do not even notice any odd feeling even when they sleep in daytime. Clinical results for this invention has been very promising. In Germany alone, there are at least 150,000 patients a year who may benefit from this kind of treatment.