New Devices For Treatment of Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Monday, June 13th, 2011 at 1:46 PM

This experimental device from Maple Grove-based Inspire Medical is designed to tame symptoms of sleep apnea. Not approved for general use in the U.S., the device is the subject of a new study involving two medical centers in Minnesota. (Courtesy to Pioneer Press: Inspire Medical)

People who struggle with obstructive sleep apnea often find that the leading treatment for the condition can make it just as tough to sleep.

Patients undergoing continuous positive airway pressure therapy – called CPAP, for short – must try to sleep while wearing a mask hooked to a bedside machine. The device pushes air through the mask to open the user’s airway, but many patients find the treatment itself is difficult to tolerate.

That frustrating trade-off is a key reason why two companies in the Twin Cities and another in California are racing to develop pacemaker-style equipment that could provide an alternative. The devices stimulate a nerve that controls tongue movement in hopes of preventing the tongue from blocking the airway during sleep.

The devices are being tested in research studies and – in a best-case scenario – wouldn’t be widely available in the United States for a few years. Even so, manufacturers will showcase their research this week at a meeting of sleep experts in Minneapolis. Doctors and analysts say the technological dream is not yet reality. [Read Complete Post By By Christopher Snowbeck ... ]