[Effects of a prosthetic dental device used to treat obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, and compliance of patients using the device]

Abstract

We studied the short-term effects and complications of the use of a dental device (prosthetic mandibular advancement: PMA) in 72 patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS), and the compliance of these patients with this treatment. In 61 (84.5%) of the 72 patients, the apnea index decreased by more than 50%. The lowest SaO2 and symptom scores also improved significantly. The severity of OSAS was not related to the percent reduction in apnea index. Complications of PMA use were observed in 22 patients (30.6%), but no severe adverse effects were observed. Sixty-two of the 72 patients continued using the PMA throughout the entire study period (overall compliance rate, 86.1%). In addition, the long-term compliance rate (more than 5 years) was 61.5%. We conclude that the effects of PMA in patients with OSAS are clinically significant, that there are no severe complications, and that compliance with treatment is good.