Mandibular-Lingual Repositioning Device--MLRD: preliminary results of 8 patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome--OSAS.

Abstract

Dental devices have been employed in the treatment of snoring and obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) of mild to moderate degrees. The authors disclose the preliminary results in 8 patients with clinically diagnosed obstructive sleep apnea polisomnographically confirmed and treated with a dental device (Mandibular-Lingual Repositioning Device--MLRD) developed by one of the authors (RCB). Cephalometrics was performed before usage of MLRD, Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) tests were conducted before and after the MLRD and a questionnaire that subjectively qualified the Overall Subjective Improvement of the patient (OSI) was filled out. The tests were repeated 4 weeks after the application of the MLRD. The average subjective overall improvement was 73.75% and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale was 13.88 (pre-MLRD) and 6.63 (post-MLRD) representing a significant statistical variation (p = 0.05). The authors discuss probable factors involved in the improvement of the subjective measurements of excessive sleepiness.