Apparatus for treatment of snoring and sleep apnoea
AssigneesKing's College London, Guy's and St. Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust
InventorJoerg Sebastien STEIER
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Abstract
A portable, battery powered apparatus (10) generates an electrical signal between electrodes (15a, 15b) to be applied to the skin of a patient for reduction or prevention of snoring or obstructive sleep apnoea. The signal comprises electrical stimulation at a frequency of 1-100 Hz and the signal comprises a stimulation free period of at least 0.5 seconds every 20 seconds, avoiding muscle fatigue when used for long periods, e.g. overnight.
Claims20
A portable, battery powered apparatus that generates an electrical signal between electrodes to be applied to a patient for reduction or prevention of snoring or sleep apnoea, wherein
- the signal comprises electrical stimulation at a frequency of 1-100 Hz;
- and
- the signal comprises a stimulation free period of at least 0.5 seconds every 20 seconds.
A method of treatment of snoring or sleep apnoea, comprising delivering to a patient a signal that stimulates the patient's tongue muscle, wherein the signal has a frequency of 1-100 Hz and is discontinuous in that it comprises a stimulation free period of at least 0.5 seconds every 20 seconds so as to provide for continuous treatment without fatigue of the patient's tongue muscle such that the treatment fails to be effective.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.