|
Gerard O’Donnell has been longing for a good night’s sleep for years. “I can be in bed for ten hours and it feels like I slept for about 90 minutes, basically the test I had done shows that I wake up 67 times per hour.”
As a firefighter and father of two, Gerard was desperate for help.
“There were days that I was completely wiped for no good reason, just for lack of proper sleep.”
Gerard went to a sleep lab and doctors confirmed that he had sleep apnea, a condition in which people stop breathing while they are asleep. It’s the result of an airway blockage…there is a collapse of soft tissue at the rear of the throat during sleep, which can also be caused by the tongue or tonsil.
“Patients not only feel bad because they are snoring and bothering other people but damage can also be done to vital organs like the heart and the brain, there is an increased incidence of stroke and other problems cardiac disease, hypertension,” explains, Dr. Charles Kimmelman of Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital.
But, an innovative implant technology, called the Pillar Procedure, which made its debut last year, is attacking sleep apnea directly at the source of the airway obstruction. To date, it’s been performed on about 9,000 Americans and is receiving rave reviews.
“The Pillar Procedure has been used for a little over a year now, fourteen, fifteen months, in my judgment it has more or less superceded most of the other treatments for snoring alone and for mild sleep apnea,” says Dr. Kimmelman.
Most commonly sleep apnea is treated by having the patient sleep with a C-PAP, a machine that blows a constant stream of air into the patient’s airway keeping it from being obstructed. Surgery can also remove tissue in the back of the palate, which is causing a roadblock for air to flow.
“The Pillar Procedure on the other hand is really a radical look at this because instead of cutting and injuring tissue we are trying to augment or help its function by putting these little implants in, it does not damage the tissue, it does not cause much pain, but it makes them work better by stiffening and supporting the airway and keeping the tissues from collapsing during the deepest phase of sleep which is when the snoring and blockage of breathing occur,” says Dr. Kimmelman.
A special device places these tiny inserts, which resemble pillars, directly into the muscle of the palate, into the roof of the mouth. With the implant in place it stiffens the palate and surrounding tissue. The procedure is performed at the doctor’s office under local anesthesia.
“About 80 percent of people are very pleased with the results, that is they have gotten significant improvement so that they can live life normally and not bother the person on the other side of the bed,” reports Dr. Kimmelman.
However, there is some controversy brewing. Members of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine say that more studies are warranted and consider the implants experimental, even though the implants are FDA approved.
Gerard had the Pillar Procedure just over 6 weeks ago and says he’s already reaping the benefits of solid sleep. “I would definitely say there is an improvement, I have more energy at work, and I am looking forward to the next couple of months, hopefully just keep stepping it up gradually.”
Typical symptoms of sleep apnea include heavy snoring, gasping or pausing in breathing during sleep, extreme sleepiness or fatigue during the day. Additional symptoms may include morning headaches, high blood pressure, weight gain, heartburn and excessive perspiration during sleep.
Related Stories