Obstructive sleep apnea is a sleep disorder that causes a blockage in your airways during the night. When your airways close, your brain wakes up — and that means your sleep is continually interrupted. Left untreated, obstructive sleep apnea can lead to other health conditions too, including severe heart risks.
Using a CPAP machine is a standard treatment for obstructive sleep apnea, but it’s not for everyone. That’s why AdventHealth is now offering Inspire® Upper Airway Stimulation Therapy, a great option for people living with sleep apnea who haven’t found CPAP to be effective.
Inspire is a treatment option that uses nerve stimulation to open your airways so you breathe (and therefore sleep) better. You can think of Inspire like a pacemaker for the tongue, connecting to the nerve that controls your tongue movement. When you breathe in, it moves your tongue forward so it doesn’t block your airway.
Inspire is a small device that is implanted completely under the skin of your chest and controlled with a handheld remote. All you need to do is turn it on when you’re ready to sleep, which means there’s no mask or hose to wear at night.
AdventHealth’s specialists help determine if Inspire is the right treatment option for you. In general, four main criteria qualify patients, 18 years and older, for Inspire:
• Apnea Hypopnea Index (AHI).
• Body mass index (BMI).
• CPAP intolerance.
• Drug-induced sleep endoscopy.
From comprehensive sleep studies at our comfortable and modern sleep center to leading-edge treatments, AdventHealth has you covered.
Call 813-615-7725, option 6 or contact rachel.liuzzi@adventhealth.com for more information and to schedule an appointment with AdventHealth’s Inspire-trained specialist.
