Devices, systems and methods for the treatment of sleep apnea
AssigneeLumen Devices, LLC
InventorsMichael Friedman, John J. Irwin, William J. Gorman, John T. Garibotto, J. Christopher Flaherty
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A medical appliance for the treatment of one or more sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea in a patient, the appliance comprising: a biasing member for inserting behind and exerting a force upon the patient's soft palate or tongue, wherein the biasing member is inserted in a reduced or minimized form and then expanded or firms once in place to exert the force. The appliance may be nasally inserted or be placed through the mouth. In a particular configuration, both the soft palate and tongue are biased to prevent obstruction of the flow of air in the nasopharyngeal airway.
Claims136
A medical appliance for a patient comprising:
- a securing device attached to a jaw of said patient;
- and
- a biasing member connected to a lateral side of said securing device adjacent the jaw, said biasing member expands and/or contracts to exert a force upon a soft palate and/or base of a tongue of said patient.
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A method for the treatment of sleep apnea comprising:
- placing a securing device about an upper or lower jaw of a patient;
- connecting a biasing member to a lateral side of said securing device adjacent the jaw, said biasing member expands and/or contracts to exert a force upon a soft palate and/or base of a tongue of said patient.
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A medical appliance for a patient comprising:
- a nasal tube;
- a biasing member either removably disposed within said nasal tube or disposed about a distal end of said nasal tube, wherein said biasing member expands and/or contracts to exert a force upon a soft palate and/or base of a tongue of said patient.
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A medical appliance for a patient comprising:
- a tubular body comprising a proximal end, a distal end and a lumen therethrough;
- a plunger comprising a plunger head portion;
- and
- a biasing member in contact with said plunger head portion;
- wherein said biasing member is disposed within said tubular body such that is it expelled via the distal end thereof upon activation of the plunger head portion;
- and
- wherein said biasing member exerts a force upon a soft palate and/or a base of a tongue of said patient.
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A method of inserting an appliance into an oral cavity of a patient, said method comprising:
- selecting an appliance comprising:
- a tubular body comprising a proximal end, a distal end and a lumen therethrough;
- a plunger comprising a plunger head portion;
- and a biasing member in contact with said plunger head portion;
- wherein said biasing member is disposed within said tubular body such that is it expelled via the distal end thereof upon activation of the plunger head portion;
- and wherein said biasing member exerts a force upon a soft palate and/or a base of a tongue of said patient;
- placing the end of said tubular body behind a said soft palate and/or base of a tongue of said patient;
- depressing said plunger and expelling said biasing member behind said soft palate and/or said base of said tongue.
A method for the treatment of sleep apnea comprising:
- inserting a nasal tube into the nasal passage of a patient, said nasal tube comprising a tube body and a biasing member, wherein said biasing member is either disposed within said tube body or disposed about a distal end portion of said tube body;
- expanding and/or contracting said biasing member, thereby exerting a force upon a soft palate and/or base of a tongue of said patient.
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Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.