Short and long-term usage of a dental device in sleep apnea syndrome.

Objective: To assess the efficacy, the compliance, and the complications of the anterior mandibular positioning (AMP) device in obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSA) patients.

Material & Methods: Polysomnographic sleep studies were performed on 38 patients before and two weeks (+/- 3 days) after continuous use of the AMP device. Twenty patients also underwent polysomnographic follow-up recordings after 1 year.

Results: The mean apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) before treatment was 35.6 +/- 17.7 and decreased significantly to 22.7 +/- 15.8 after 2 weeks of treatment (p = 0.01). The mean AHI after 1 year of usage was 25.3 +/- 12.9, differing significantly from the pretreatment AHI (p = 0.01). Seventy-one percent of patients used the device for 18.4 months (range 12-27). One-year clinical evaluation showed preserved dental status, preserved action of the masticatory muscles, and preserved function of the temporo-mandibular joint (TMJ). Eleven (29%) of the patients did not use the AMP device because of TMJ pain and/or unsatisfying results.

Conclusions: The AMP device is well tolerated in 76% of patient. When tolerated, its compliance and efficiency are preserved across the year without long-term oral and jaw dysfunctions.