CPAP SAVES LIVES! SO DO CPAP ALTERNATIVES! I HATE CPAP HELPS PATIENTS FIND CPAP ALTERNATIVE.

    /24-7PressRelease/ - GURNEE, IL, June 13, 2008 - The American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine held its 17th annual meeting on June 6-8 in Baltimore. The objectives of the AADSM annual meeting are to teach participants a basic knowledge in dental sleep medicine including understanding of the pathophysiology of obstructive sleep apnea in men and women, the elderly as well as young children and adolescents. I HATE CPAP LLC had a presentation independent of the AADSM at the same hotel. Their website http://www.ihatecpap.com promotes Dental Sleep Medicine and sleep apnea dentists as well as sleep medicine in general to the public. Patients fine their site a great resource for information about dental sleep medicine. There are numerous oral appliances that can be used to treat obstructive sleep apnea and snoring as well as diagnostic tools available for sleep apnea dentists. There is no specialty of Dental Sleep Medicine but The American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine does convey Diplomate status to dentists who have shown knowledge and experience in treating Obstructive Sleep Apnea as well as showing a thorough understanding of the field of sleep medicine. The American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine gave its board certification exam.

Dr Peter Cistulli MD. PhD an Australian researcher who has provided numerous stuies showing the efficacy of oral appliance treatment of sleep apnea presented his talk , sleep apnea a year in review. His research and his review of the research of other sleep scientists show that oral appliances work equally well compared to CPAP. An article in Sleep and Breathing in 2007 showed similar improvement in in performance in driving when sleep apnea is treated with CPAP or MAS (mandibular advancement splint).

Dr Atul Malhotra of Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School gave an excellent presentation on the Cardiovascular Complications of Sleep Disorders. He presented data that showed almost everyone requires 7-8 hours of nightly sleep and that for optimal neurocognitive function people may require 9 hours of sleep for every 24-hour period. An article he quoted from the Lancet by Spiegel et al showed that induced sleep deprivation in normal men resulted in increases in cortisol levels and elevated sympathetic activity. The study also showed impaired glucose tolerance with sleep deprivation. Another study by Patel et al in The American Journal of Epidemiology (2006) showed weight gain to result from shortened sleep duration.

Sleep deprivation and/or inadequate sleep can lead to impaired brain function, increased cardiovascular problems as well as metabolic complications. Hypertension risk increases with obstructive sleep apnea and evaluating patient's sleep may become an essential part of treating high blood pressure. Treatment of sleep apnea with CPAP or with CPAP Alternatives offered by dental sleep medicine has been shown to have positive effects on hypertension. Treatment of Sleep Apnea has also been shown to help refractory hypertension. Treatment of obstructive sleep apnea should be considered an essential element in treating hypertension based on the data presented.

Material presented from Lavie, in Sleep Medicine Review showed that the cyclical intermittent hypoxia from sleep apnea cause an increase in free radicals and Homocysteine that can change gene expression and reduce Nitric oxide. It can also lead to increased inflammatory products and to increased adhesion molecules. The effect of these changes is endothelial dysfunction or the start and exacerbation of vascular diseases. Studies have shown that treatment with both CPAP and oral appliances are beneficial. CPAP is considered the gold standard of treatment but oral appliances are a first line treatment choice as well for mild to moderate sleep apnea. Oral appliances are considered an alternative for CPAP in patients with severe apnea who cannot tolerate CPAP.

Patients who are interested in learning more about Dental Sleep Medicine or using oral appliances as cpap alternatives can visit http://www.ihatecpap.com

Dr Ira L Shapira a general dentist from Gurnee, Illinois in the Chicago area who formed I HATE CPAP LLC to help educate the public about dental sleep medicine and the dangers of sleep apnea. He feels that his site gives important information that will save lives. This is especially true for patients who have abandoned their cpap machines and not sought alternative treatment. Many patients are unaware that there are alternatives to cpap. Patients interested in Dental Sleep mMedicine in Illinois or Wisconsin should contact Dr Shapira Toll Free at 1-8-NO-PAP-MASK or at his website http://www.ihatecpap.com. Many consider it the premiere site on Dental Sleep Medicine. Dr Ira L Shapira is currently starting Chicagoland Dental Sleep Medicine Associates and has announced that he will be opening offices in Skokie and Bannockburn this summer with additional offices planned across Chicago and Chicago Suburban areas and possibly into Wisconsin.

Some people have commented that the phrase I HATE CPAP is inflamatory or that it is negative advertising. It is actually an emotional appeal to connect with patients who risk their lives by not treating their sleep apnea. Dr Shapira believes CPAP is an amazing treatment that will save lives. He is concerned that the majority of patients who are prescribed CPAP do not use it at all or wear it for a sufficient amount of time to adequately treat their disease. The name "I HATE CPAP" came about because that was the number one comment Dr Shapira heard from his patients. "The most successful treatment will fail 100% of the time if the patient does not use it" according to Dr. Shapira.

It is vital that dentists treating sleep apnea work with sleep physicians and that follow-up polysomnography always be used to ensure the efficacy of treatment.

Dr Shapira has been involved in the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea for over 25 years. He practices in Gurnee, Illinois and has recently formed Chicagoland Dental Sleep Medicine Associates and will be opening offices in Skokie, Bannockburn, Chicago and other Chicago suburbs. While he was not a presenter at the meeting he did share with several doctors photos of his "tongue tapper" that can be used to increase the efficacy of many types of dental appliance that treat snoring and sleep apnea. The tongue tapper can be added inexpensively to other appliances. Oral appliances can have problems but most are easily solved. Dr Shapira has an interesting article in Sleep and Health Journal on oral appliances that can be found at
http://sleepandhealth.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=130&tid=22

http://www.Sleepandhealth.com is an xcellent resource for information on all aspects of sleep medicine.

Another excellent article on TMJ Disorders can be found at:
http://sleepandhealth.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=237&tid=22

Dr Ira L Shapira is an author and section editor of Sleep and Health, President of I HATE CPAP LLC, President Dato-TECH, and has a Dental Practice with his partner Dr Mark Amidei. He has recently formed Chicagoland Dental Sleep Medicine Associates. He is a Regent of ICCMO and its representative to the TMD Alliance, He was a founding and certified member of the Sleep Disorder Dental Society which became the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine, A founding member of DOSA the Dental Organization for Sleep Apnea. He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine, A Diplomat of the American Academy of Pain Management, a graduate of LVI. He is a former assistant professor at Rush Medical Schools Sleep Service where he worked with Dr Rosalind Cartwright who is a founder of Sleep Medicine and Dental Sleep Medicine. Dr Shapira is a consultant to numerous sleep centers and teaches courses in Dental Sleep Medicine in his office to doctors from around the U.S. He is the Founder of I HATE CPAP LLC and http://www.ihatecpap.com Dr Shapira also holds several patents on methods and devices for the prophylactic minimally invasive early removal of wisdom teeth and collection of bone marrow and stem cells. Dr Shapira is a licensed general dentist in Illinois and Wisconsin.

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