Sleep Apnoea Forum Bringing Help + Support to the Patient
Oropharyngeal exercises
I asked medics at the Castle Hill CPAP clinic about tongue and throat exercises. They said no evidence, and it can't work anyway because the muscles fully relax during sleep.
Yet I'm watching Vik Veer, head of ENT at a London hospital, offer evidence and show how to do exercises.
Someone doesn't know what they're talking about - but who?
Views: 119
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Kath Hope on
-
I would always be guided by Dr Vik Veer, who is the UK's leading ENT surgeon specialising in snoring, sleep apnoea and UARS. He doesn't say the exercises will cure moderate to severe sleep apnoea, but can help by strengthening the airway and tongue muscles. There have been studies done about neuro-muscular stimulation stating it improves things - mainly in snorers or those with mild sleep apnoea. People also pay for the expensive eXciteOSA too and mainly get good results, and sometimes Dr Vik Veer recommends it to his own patients https://www.hope2sleep.co.uk/excite0sa-daytime-therapy-for-snoring-...
-
Permalink Reply by John on
-
Hi Kath yes I was pretty disappointed when the consultant told me this - as I had some papers sitting next to me saying studies showed an effect - and that's evidence.
Looking at the exite thing it says, "has been clinically proven to target the root cause of snoring and mild obstructive sleep apnoea."
Thing is, none of the medics treating me have even addressed root causes, and I've really asked - a lot.
I got a scan which I thought was going to tell me. I thought they were going to point at my throat and say "this tissue here is causing you apnea"
Nope, they just told me about a polyp, which I've known about for five years.
There was a guy at Modality partnership, Dr Kelly, who was an ENT specialist. I thought he was really good. He wanted to work his way through my breathing chain eliminating causes, but the COVID came and he moved on. I guess breathing specialists were really in demand at that point.
It's been about five years since they prescribed CPAP, spent possibly £ thousands in scans, got me to appointments at Castle Hill, to be told nothing new.
Never once have I got an actual diagnosis of the actual problem.
The only time I raised the possibility of muscular tone it was pooh poohed.
Yet here is a device that addresses the muscular problem - if anyone can diagnose it.
Is it me or is anyone else not getting answers as to actual root cause of their OSA?
And I don't think they're going to be interested in UARS either.
They say my apneas are dealt with. Maybe true, but I still wake up obviously with a problem sleeping.
Asked them if hypopneas could be doing me in - they don't think that's a problem either. Even now sat up at a keyboard I can feel the tightness in my throat and raspy breathing.
So I recently saw two of those not-quite-GPs, Practice Assistants or something they call them. Showed them my flimsy collapsing nostrils - they don't know anything about it. To me it's an obvious problem but the ENT at Castle Hill don't see it as a priority either.
I wonder how much the local consultants know about it?
About
Sleep Apnoea Forum
New to the Sleep Apnoea Forum?
1. Stop by our Sleep Apnoea Welcome Center to introduce yourself to the SleepGuide community.
2. Start a New Topic of Conversation.
3. Post your photos - of yourself, your old CPAP machine, your new CPAP machine, your pet, something about you!
Interested in advertising, have a problem or need to contact us? Click the Report an Issue page.
Latest Activity
"Ha well it lasted a couple of days but started howling again. But it's a step in the right direction, just needs a bit more work."
"Nope, I just accept that some people's throats tend to close when they sleep, due to a loss of muscle tone during deeper sleep. Back when I was diagnosed, the sleep lab just filmed you whilst you slept, stuck an O2 meter on your finger,…"
"Did anyone tell you exactly what the anatomical issue is, Jonathan?"
"Can't say I know about this."
"So I tore some fabric from one of the filters and glued it over the holes - and it worked!It was dead quiet, and the air was still flowing freely.It was quiet all night then after a few hours a bit of whistling until I gave it a wipe.Vast…"
"Hi Jonathan, well see my nose is blocked a lot, so I mouth breath which really sucks a lot more moisture and makes my mouth dry. So I put humidity on maximum, which makes for condensation at the mask end, which becomes a demonic reed instrument.Now…"
ResMed AirSense 10 getting noisy
HelloI have an NHS issued ResMed AirSense 10 with heated humidifier. In the last couple of weeks, it's developed an annoying noise, when I inhale. It bothers me a little and my partner a lot! I sometimes get problems if the water container in the…See More
"Hi
My first question is why is condensation forming? I very occasionally get some condensation, may be once a month, but I can quickly run a finger around the inside of the mask, and wipe it away. I use a nasal mask, with the humidifier…"
"11K+? Ok that's probably where I should look then :-)"
"Hi John. Thanks for the compliment as I do my best popping on here, but it's difficult due to us now supporting 25k+ patients at the charity. To be honest, the forum is quiet because most people seem to prefer Facebook and forums aren't as…"
"There's some information here, but generally it's very common and likely due to our anatomy."
"I've found they get lost easy. The Airmax one is £10, lasted a couple of weeks before disappearing.The white ones are quite cheap, work out about 50p each off Ebay.I was wanting to experiment with making a mould and crafting my own…"
Has anyone been told root cause of their OSA?
Hi, I'm having trouble getting diagnoses for anything from the NHS recently. A pressing one being what exactly causes my apnea.Is it like this for everyone or do some people get told what is the specific physical problem and root cause?See More
"Hi Kath yes I was pretty disappointed when the consultant told me this - as I had some papers sitting next to me saying studies showed an effect - and that's evidence.Looking at the exite thing it says, "has been clinically proven to…"
"Hi Sarah,
Im interested in the Philips Dreamstation 2 Auto CPAP that you have for sale and would be grateful if you could contact me on 07909996432 at your convenience to discuss.
Im not available durings parts of the day so if there is no answer…"
"My sleep apnoea just requires me to pop a mask on before I go to bed. But your circumstances may be different."
UK Attendance Allowance
Does anyone know if Obstructive Sleep Apnoea can be the basis for a claim for attendance allowance in the UK?See More
© 2024 Created by The SleepGuide Crew.
Powered by
