Anti Snoring Device

Do these anti-snoring devices really work? CBS News correspondent Kelly Cobiella reports that, devices aside, snoring could be a sign of serious medical issues that need to be addressed.

“I was totally surprised.

The booming sleep industry and an aging and increasingly obese population have prompted greater use of the devices, which treat sleep apnea, a condition that causes snoring, brief breathing lapses and tiredness. It is the object of the present invention to provide an improved mouthpiece device for use in the prevention of snoring and the minimization of sleep apnea which overcomes the drawbacks of the above-discussed prior art.

Nos. 746,869, 774,446, 2,424,533 and 3,434,470 are generally directed to mouthpiece devices which regulate the amount of air which can be inhaled and exhaled through the mouth of the user. The quantity of air is controlled so as to be insufficient to cause the necessary vibration incident to snoring and, in this manner, also regulates the flow of air through a user’s nose.

An anti-snore device as disclosed which is intended to alleviate benign loud snoring and to minimize mild to moderate sleep apnea disorders.

“If you have a problem with snoring, you need to be evaluated by a medical professional,” he said. When Cindy finally saw a specialist about her snoring, she was diagnosed with sleep apnea, a potentially dangerous condition. Manufacturers of over-the-counter snoring aids say their products do help reduce “social” snoring, but aren’t designed to treat serious conditions such as sleep apnea.

Cobiella spoke with Cindy and Tom Scheid.

As a sleeping person inhales, the soft palate, uvula and sometimes tonsils remain relaxed, causing vibrations as air fights its way through a narrowed or obstructed passage.

The newest surgical treatment for snoring is somnoplasty - a kind of internal facelift that tightens the saggy tissue blocking airways and causing snoring’s vibration. 746,869, 774,446, 2,424,533, 3,132,647, 3,434,470, 4,304,227, 4,669,459, 4,676,240, 4,715,368 and 4,901,73 Each of these known prior art arrangements are directed to preventing snoring and/or sleep apnea by concentrating on one aspect of the problem.

When your patient inhales, this tissue vibrates, making the snoring sound.

Medicare estimates that 2% to 4% of Americans have sleep apnea, which is linked to health problems such as coronary artery disease and strokes. Doctors in the central Florida town say their community is at the forefront of a national trend that has made the devices one of Medicare’s fastest-growing medical equipment expenses, up 96% nationwide since 200

Nationwide, the program for the elderly and disabled approved $571 million in payments for the devices, called continuous positive airway pressure machines last year, up from $291 million in 2004, Medicare data requested by USA TODAY show.

A sleeping mask that applies continuous positive airway pressure is helpful in preventing the inside of the throat from collapsing during sleep. Nozovent plastic device, worn inside the nostrils at the base of the nose, allegedly silenced the Guinness Book of World Records’ loudest snorer.

A device as recited in claim 4 wherein said base member extends over substantially the entire dentition of the user and said upstanding wall portions taper off towards the ends of said U-shaped base member. A device as recited in claim 12 wherein said handle further includes support means adapted to engage an external object in order to support said device. A device as recited in claim 8 wherein said at least one tab includes a substantially vertical section and a sloped section and wherein said sloped section is intended to guide the user’s front teeth to a desired position during the fitting process. A device as recited in claim 1 wherein said airway passage integrity means constitutes an extension of a handle used when said device is molded to fit the particular user. A device as recited in claim 6 wherein said airway passage constitutes a slot which is substantially rectangular in cross-section. A device as recited in claim 3 further including a concavity formed in the rear face of said base member, said concavity surrounding the entire periphery of said airway passage in order to permit forward positioning of a user’s tongue. Based on the above description, it can be readily seen that the present anti-snore device constitutes a mouthpiece which can be easily made to comfortably conform to a user’s mouth, held against unwanted movement during use since the base 5 covers substantially the entire maxillary dentition and the entire mandibular dentition and treads 10 provide additional surface material so that the mouthpiece actually becomes indigited with the user’s entire maxillary dentition. The anti-snore device comprises a mouthpiece formed from a moldable thermal-plastic material having an upper surface portion which substantially covers the entire maxillary dentition and a lower surface portion which contacts substantially the entire mandible dentition of a user’s mouth.

FIG. The anti-snore device, according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, shall now be described with initial reference to FIGS.