
Inspire Sleep Apnea Treatment: A Complete Guide
Jan 31, 2025Introduction
As you know, The Sleep Syndicate is all about evidence-based solutions to sleep quality, so we're applying that approach to reviews of sleep products and treatments. We'll dig up the science to back up claims made by products to see if there's anything behind those promises. We don’t have partnerships with, or earn anything from, the products and solutions that we write about.
In this article, we’re looking at the Inspire treatment for sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is a serious medical condition that affects millions of individuals worldwide, disrupting not just nightly rest but overall health and quality of life. For those who have struggled with traditional treatments for sleep apnea, Inspire sleep apnea therapy emerges as a potential alternative for sleep apnea management. While The Sleep Syndicate’s program for sleep improvement does not address medical conditions like sleep apnea, pairing your medical treatment with a science-backed approach to sleep habits can improve your chances of better sleep, improved health and increased daytime energy.
Understanding Sleep Apnea and Inspire Therapy
What is Sleep Apnea?
Almost 20% of women and more than 30% of men in the United States are affected by sleep apnea, a common disorder that causes you to repeatedly stop breathing while you sleep. This can lead to daytime grogginess and significantly increase your risk of heart disease and other serious health issues. [1]
The Inspire Difference
Since the early 1980s, continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy has been the standard treatment for sleep apnea. CPAP involves wearing a mask over your nose and mouth while you sleep, which is connected to a machine that uses a steady stream of air to keep your airways open. However, many people find the mask uncomfortable, and about 50% of users abandon the therapy within the first year. However, Inspire sleep apnea treatment offers a different potential approach for patients who find CPAP ineffective or uncomfortable.
How Inspire Sleep Therapy Works
Inspire sleep apnea treatment is an implantable device that is intended to work with your natural breathing patterns. Unlike traditional CPAP machines, this therapy claims to not require masks or hoses. The Inspire sleep apnea system claims to monitor your breathing patterns while you sleep and delivers gentle stimulation to key airway muscles, keeping them open throughout the night.
How it works
- Device Placement: A small device is surgically implanted under the skin of the chest
- Breathing Monitoring: The system continuously monitors breathing patterns during sleep
- Muscle Stimulation: Mild electrical pulses are delivered to key airway muscles
- Airway Maintenance: These pulses prevent airway obstruction, ensuring consistent breathing
User Control
- Patients can use a handheld remote to activate and deactivate the device
- Simple on/off functionality before and after sleep
Clinical Success and Patient Outcomes
As this is a new potential therapy for sleep apnea, there are limited studies, so the data presented should be taken with a grain of salt.
As we know, with an evidence-based approach to assessing treatments, the more times a study is repeated, by different teams, with the same or similar results, in a reputable peer-reviewed publication, the stronger the evidence.
So let’s look at what evidence we were able to find related to studies on the Inspire treatment for sleep apnea.
Evidence
Research and clinical studies by Sleep Breath [2] & Life (Basel) [3] have demonstrated the following outcomes:
- There was a 75% surgical success rate for patients who were tested and observed for the research, meaning they didn’t experience any major complications. The procedure represents an effective and safe surgical treatment for moderate-severe OSA in selected adult patients who had difficulty accepting or adhering to CPAP treatment [2]
- There was a positive impact on quality of life in patients with moderate/severe OSA implanted with the Inspire device, with a significant improvement, especially in usual activities. [3]
- The results indicate that, in patients with moderate to severe OSA who do not tolerate or do not accept standard treatment with CPAP, through the implantation of the Inspire® device, improves the patient’s quality of life to values equivalent to those of the general population included in the study. [2]
In conclusion, it appears that there is some evidence suggesting that the Inspire treatment can be an effective treatment for sleep apnea for some patients, assuming they are eligible for the procedure and are willing to take the risks associated with this type of surgery. Hopefully additional studies will be completed in the future that will provide additional support for this alternative to CPAP treatment.
Eligibility Criteria
Not all patients are suitable candidates for Inspire therapy. Typical requirements include:
- Moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea diagnosis
- Body Mass Index (BMI) under 32
- Minimum age of 18
- Unsuccessful or intolerable CPAP treatment history
Important Considerations
According to FDA’s safety and effectiveness data, Common side effects of the Inspire sleep apnea implant procedure include:
- Mild sore throat
- Pain at the incision sites
- Muscle aches
Potential complications may involve:
- Nerve or blood vessel damage
- Skin irritation
- Localized pain or swelling
- Tongue soreness or restricted movement
- Dry mouth
- Headaches
- Cough
- Choking issues
- Insomnia may also occur.
Additionally, having the implant will prohibit you from certain MRI tests, which could limit future diagnostic options.
Individual risks vary, so consult your doctor to carefully weigh the benefits and risks before proceeding with this treatment. [4]
Complementary Sleep Management
While treatment from a physician or other qualified healthcare provider is needed for a medical diagnosis like sleep apnea, pairing this with a science-based but holistic and natural approach can improve the likelihood of getting the rest you need.
The Sleep Syndicate's Six-Week Program
The Sleep Syndicate's 6 Weeks to Better Sleep program is an evidence-based program designed to guide you through gradual, science-based adjustments to your sleep habits using proven behavior modification techniques.
Our comprehensive program supports your sleep health journey with:
- Customizable text messages to trigger habit change when you need it most
- Lifetime access to our sleep habit tracking app
- Educational videos on how to achieve the best sleep
- Nightly wind-down podcast
- Free sleep score quiz
Improve Your Sleep Habits Today
Discover strategies to improve your sleep habits here: The Sleep Syndicate’s 6 Weeks To Better Sleep program
Citations:
[1] https://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/sleep-apnea/sleep-apnea-latest-research
[2] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31418162/
[3] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9694893/
[4] https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/cdrh_docs/pdf13/P130008S039B.pdf
Disclaimer
THIS WEBSITE AND PROGRAM DOES NOT PROVIDE MEDICAL ADVICE AND IS NOT INTENDED TO ADDRESS MEDICAL CONDITIONS
No material on this site is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment and before undertaking changes to health-related habits, and never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website.