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Doctors at ENT Head & Neck Specialists have completed the practice’s 100th Berks County procedure of Inspire — an FDA-approved obstructive sleep apnea treatment option for people who cannot use Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) therapy.
Drs. Scott Cronin, Jeffrey Driben and Adam Vasconcellos, partners in the Wyomissing practice, reached the milestone in April and have since performed five additional Inspire procedures.
Inspire works inside the body with a patient’s natural breathing process to treat sleep apnea. The Inspire system is implanted during a short, outpatient procedure, according to a press release. Mild stimulation opens the airway during sleep, allowing oxygen to flow naturally. Patients turn Inspire on before bed with a small, handheld remote and turn it off when they wake up.
“Inspire represents a significant advancement in treating sleep apnea. It is clinically proven to reduce sleep apnea events, has a high level of patient satisfaction and a high therapy adherence,” Vasconcellos said in a statement.
Obstructive sleep apnea affects 22 million Americans, and occurs when the airway collapses during sleep and blocks the flow of oxygen to the brain, according to the release. The brain senses a lack of oxygen and wakes the body up just long enough to take a breath, then falls back asleep. The cycle repeats throughout the night and causes poor and disruptive sleep.
Left untreated, obstructive sleep apnea can cause vehicle and workplace accidents, worsening mood and memory, stroke, heart attack, and even death, the release stated. According to information provided by Bryan Laudermilch, a territory manager for Inspire Medical Systems, statistics show up to 50% of CPAP users struggle with the CPAP device, so Inspire presents an alternative for those patients.
The Inspire procedure gained FDA approval in 2014, according to Laudermilch. In May 2018, the Reading Inspire program started with Reading Hospital, and in 2020 the Surgical Institute of Reading was added as a site of service.
Physicians complete an FDA-approved training program in order to be able to implant the device, which is placed under the skin of the neck and chest through two small incisions. Most patients return home the same day.
According to information on ENT Head & Neck Specialists’ website, the procedure could be a good option for patients over the age of 18 who have been diagnosed with moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea, struggle with the use of CPAP and are not significantly obese.
The safety and effectiveness of the Inspire procedure was evaluated during the STAR clinical trial, according to the release. Five-year STAR trial outcomes show “patients using Inspire experience significant reductions in sleep apnea events and significant improvements in quality-of-life measures.”
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