Over the last five to ten years we have observed thousands of patients diagnosed and treated for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). As a result, we have seen a wide variety of patients who can’t tolerate CPAP and do much better with oral appliance therapy (OAT). In fact, when applicable, we track outcomes based on success rates for converting from CPAP to  OAT. As of this writing, we have treated 4,217 OSA patients with oral appliance therapy and 2,896 of those have been removed from CPAP – that’s 68-69%.

In addition, today we want to share more reasons why it’s important to consider oral appliance therapy for treating OSA. The Journal of Dental Sleep Medicine  Volume 7, No. 3, 2020 has published a position statement titled, “Oral Appliance Therapy Should be Prescribed as a First-Line Therapy for OSA during the COVID-19 Pandemic.”

To summarize, it lists 7 important reasons for recommending oral appliance therapy as a first-line OSA therapy at this time of uncertainty with the pandemic. These reasons all point to the increased risk of infection for patients using CPAP devices.

Here’s the statement as it appears in the Journal of Dental Sleep Medicine: