Treatment

Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP/BIPAP/VPAP)

A frequently used treatment for moderate to severe OSA, CPAP, BIPAP, and VPAP provide a steady stream of air to splint open the airway and give normal breathing. Masks are much smaller now which position in or over the nose, and, rarely, over the mouth and nose if the patient prefers. Recognized as the optimum therapy for reliable and beneficial treatment, patients sleep well, feel rested, and health is greatly improved by using this while OSA patients sleep.

Types of PAP

CPAP is the most frequently used type which supplies the same pressure on inhalation and exhalation. It is best for most patients who should receive the same pressure throughout the night. Auto CPAP may be used temporarily but is not a substitute for proper tests to set pressure.

BIPAP has two pressures, a higher for inhaling and lower for exhaling. This is useful for patients needing to tolerate high pressures, in COPD or emphysema, and congestive heart failure. It is only correct for some patients and is a much more expensive pap.

VPAP Adapt has three pressures, inhalation, exhalation, and a continuous pressure on exhalation to support respiration in patients with central sleep apneas as in the case of heart failure, strokes, head trauma, pain medication use, and complex central sleep apnea in some OSA patients which does not respond to CPAP or BIPAP.

CPAP User’s Booklet

CPAP Clinic

Barker Sleep PAP users have one of the highest success and satisfaction rates in the country thanks to our patient support clinic. Patients may take advantage of visits in our daytime clinic with PAP expert specialists to ensure PAP is easy and beneficial to each patient. We check your equipment settings and function, educate and train on its use, help exchange into more comfortable or better fitting masks, and make pressure adjustments are done correctly to maximize PAP use. Only the finest, most reliable and patient friendly PAP parts and supplies are prescribed through Barker Sleep. All paperwork required by insurance and specific to patient requests and health care needs are expedited by Barker Sleep.

CPAP Downloads

PAP machines have memory cards and internal memory to record patient use time, leaks, estimates regarding apneas, and pressure being delivered to the patient. A useful tool, Dr Barker and the team use their experience and knowledge with this data to assess PAP efficacy for each patient. A report is generated which most insurance requires and is important to optimizing care for each OSA patient treated with PAP.

Insurance companies require submission of the downloaded reports with office visit records to confirm compliance with PAP use and cover necessary replacement masks and hoses regularly throughout the year.

Oral Appliances

These devices open the patient’s airway as they sleep by advancing and holding the lower jaw forward. Oral appliances are typically used to treat sleep related bruxism, obstructive sleep apnea and snoring.

Provent

Provent Sleep Apnea Therapy is a simple and effective new treatment option for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Provent Therapy utilizes your own breathing to provide clinically proven results in the treatment of OSA. If you have been diagnosed with OSA and are noncompliant with your prescribed CPAP therapy, Provent Therapy just might be the answer for you.

Surgery

A number of surgical options are available to patients suffering from severe cases of obstructive sleep apnea. Surgery addresses the anatomic problem areas that compromise airflow and cause apnea. Any surgical treatment for sleep apnea must address the anatomic problem areas. There may be one or several areas that compromise airflow and cause apnea. Surgical treatments can address the nose, palate, tongue, jaw, neck, obesity, or several of these areas at the same time. Each surgery’s success rate is determined by whether or not a specific airway collapse is prevented. Therefore, the ideal surgery is different for each patient and depends on each patient’s specific problem.

Medications

As sleep pathways and neurotransmitters are being extensively mapped and understood, medications are “target specific” to treat the many sleep disorders caused by chemical changes in these pathways. This gives new opportunities at BSI to prescribe problem specific medications with high efficacy and minimal if any adverse effects. New trends in sleep are combining complimentary medications which attack a sleep problem from various angles ultimately with great patient satisfaction, but overall lower doses of meds.

Examples of some of the many medications which may be prescribed for our patients depending on their diagnosis and needs are shown in the following categories:

  • Sleep Medications
    • Ambien /CR
    • Belsomra
    • Lunesta
    • Melatonin
    • Prazosin
    • Restoril
    • Rozerem
    • Silenor
    • Sonata
  • Narcolepsy/Hypersomnia
    • Adderall IR/XR
    • Dexedrine
    • Nuvigil
    • Provigil
    • Ritalin
  • Restless Leg Syndrome/Periodic Limb Movement
    • Horizant
    • Mirapex /ER
    • Neupro Patch
    • Neurontin
    • Percocet
    • Requip
    • Sinemet
  • REM Behavior Disorder
    • Klonopin
  • Claustrophobic
    • Ativan

Bright Light Therapy

For patients with imbalanced circadian rhythms, an effective way to shift the circadian rhythms back to their normal pattern is to deliver a specifically engineered wavelength, color and intensity of light the stimulates the production of key substances triggered by the brain. This device shines a safe light in the peripheral vision of the patient, naturally affects the body by shifting the body clock to its correct timing, causing the proper signals to be produced at the right time of day. Successful bright light therapy provides patients with more energy and mood relief.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

These methods teach the patient how to change actions or thoughts that hurt his or her ability to sleep well. The patient learns how to develop habits that promote a healthy pattern of sleep.

Testimonials

“I don’t have a CPAP, I don’t have a chinstrap.....
-- Betty Kyle-MATRx Oral Appliance more >>

Photo Gallery

View photos of our facility go >>

Schedule an Appointment

Barker Sleep Institute has convenient locations in Knoxville and Sevierville! schedule>>