Tongue implant for sleep apnea

Abstract

A patient's obstructive sleep apnea is treated by identifying a patient with sleep apnea attributable at least in part to movement of a base of a tongue of said patient toward a pharyngeal wall of said patient. The method includes identifying a region in the tongue extending from a mandibular-geniohyoid interface to the base of the tongue and stiffening a tissue of the tongue throughout the identified region.

Description

IBACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] This invention pertains to a method for treating a condition of an upper airway of a patient. More particularly, this invention is directed to a method for treating obstructive sleep apnea by stiffening a tongue of a patient.

[0003] 2. Description of the Prior Art

[0004] Upper airway conditions such as obstructive sleep apnea (“OSA”) and snoring have received a great deal of attention. These conditions have recognized sociological and health implications for both the patient and the patient's bed partner.

[0005] Numerous attempts have been made towards treating OSA and snoring. These include placing implants in either the tissue of the soft palate or the pharyngeal airway as disclosed in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 6,250,307 to Conrad et al. dated Jun. 26, 2003, U.S. Pat. No. 6,523,542 to Metzger et al. dated Feb. 25, 2003 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,431,174 to Knudson et al. dated Aug. 13, 2002. Further, U.S. Pat. No. 6,601,584...

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