Posted by Peg on June 12, 2007 at 12:45:54:

In Reply to: Re: Somnoplasty tongue base posted by Peg on June 11, 2007 at 17:12:31:

Here's some more info I wrote on the other forum:

In Reply to: Re: 33yo 1/2 asian female OSA MMA, GA posted by pestomac on June 08, 2007 at 13:40:11:

To pestomac:
#1) As for the mandibular device - I can only surmise why this device did not work for me - if it were not for my upper teeth pushed back this device would have probably worked for me. To describe my mandibular device - the plastic upper and lower portions (looks like bleaching trays only harder) hooked together by a hinge on the back of the device (toward the back sides of the mouth). The bottom was dependent upon where the top was - so if my upper teeth were out the way they once were (not pushed back) the lower would protrude further than what is was doing with my teeth pushed back. Maybe this device just wasn't the proper one for me. He offered many he had me look at a catalog to pick one out; he suggested one - perhaps he chose the wrong one for me, because I do know that there was one that he offered with "velcro" like strips so that you can make your lower jaw come out further if you wish, (looking back I should have picked this one). I do not have the name of the device I should ask my dentist - he's the one who made it from some company; frankly I don’t think he knew what he was doing - anyway $500 down the drain. You mention the Herbst - perhaps that one works. You said “ Good Oral appliances are made with the teeth apart so the position of the front teeth does not effect the where the lower jaw can be held.” Again - if my upper teeth were the way they were before pushing them back - yes it would have brought the lower forward even more then with the teeth pushed back.

#2) In response to your statement “Apnea is multi factorial and the type of orthodontic treatment is not one of the factors.” The only thing I agree on with this statement is that apnea is caused by many factors. I DISAGREE THAT ORTHODONTIC TREATMENT CANNOT BE A CAUSE OF SLEEP APNEA. Put it this way, by removing two teeth from the upper teeth and pushing them back, you are crowding in the tongue; every millimeter counts when you have a large tongue and orthodontists should be aware of this. And also, by removing bicuspids and reducing the size of the maxillary arch to match the mandible, volume is also reduced. This is why I developed sleep apnea - this all started very shortly after my teeth were moving back into place. Only we, as people who have had orthodontic treatment and the consequences that transpired after, know what truly happened. We know our bodies and doctors, dentist, orthodontists, etc, cannot tell us otherwise. Here is some info from a website http://www.brianpalmerdds.com/apnea_commentary.htm “ The common orthodontic practice of removing bicuspids and retruding the anterior teeth can be potentially deadly because it reduces oral cavity space.” and “ Removal of 4 bicuspids for orthodontic reasons can be potentially deadly if OSA develops.”

Sleep apnea is not only serious, but a potentially deadly condition and yes, there are various causes, oversized uvula, retrognathic mandible and the severity of it, large tongue, BMI, etc. But I do know that my orthodontic treatment caused my sleep apnea. With someone with a large tongue, you do not crowd it in anymore than what it’s crowded into already. If this helps one person to be aware of this situation, so be it. Lessons learned.

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