Intraoral devices for the management of obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea*

Obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea (OSAH) is a breathing disorder that is characterized by apneic and hypoapneic episodes occurring during sleep. OSAH is included within the primary sleep disorders and much research has been carried out over the past decades to achieve standardization of diagnostic criteria. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine provides that, along with symptoms such as hypersomnolence, snoring and morning headache, an Apnea Hypoapnea Index (AHI) greater or equal to 5, where AHI is given by the number of episodes/per hour of sleep, is needed to make diagnosis of OSAH.Apneic events are due to the obstruction of the upper airways during sleep. Such obstruction is caused by the collapse of pharynx and may also be partial, thus causing snoring sounds and hypoapnea.The treatment of these disorders has not been standardized yet, being mainly based on empirical observations and suggestions, and intraoral devices are gaining attention as potentially useful tools in the management of OSAH symptoms.This chapter will provide a thorough review of the literature data on the efficacy of the different types of intraoral devices used in OSAH patients. © 2012 by Nova Science Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.