NHS Do they offer neck braces for sleep apnea?

[Topcat]

Hi I’m new to this sleep apnea and was wondering if a neck brace is recommended by the nhs as I can’t see anything suggesting they do. Has anyone in England had any doctor or nurse recommend one?

[GrumpyHere]

Dunno about NHS recommendation...

But soft cervical collar works for a lot of fellow forum members ...
https://www.cpaptalk.com/viewtopic/t912 ... ollar.html

<edit> Sorry, I didn't mean to mislead you. As both rick blaine and chunkyfrog have pointed out, the collar can be an effective adjunct to CPAP use. ASSumption --> egg on my face.

Plus search results...
https://www.cpaptalk.com/search.php?key ... cal+collar

[rick blaine]

Hi Topcat,

Er, you do realise that this forum is based in America? And while it has global reach, and a fair number of posters from all around the world, the predominance of members live in the US?

Me, I live in Gloucestershire, and I was a medical journalist before I retired.

As to your question, do you mean: "Does anybody in the NHS prescribe a neck-brace to be used on its own, and without a CPAP machine, to treat sleep apnea?"

I haven't done a survey, but I doubt it. It would be considered unprofessional.

The 'gold standard' for treatment for sleep apnea recommended by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence is a CPAP machine. Anything less than that, or other than that, would be a breach of duty of care.

If that's not enough of an answer, think of the money aspect. You can get a neck-brace from Boots (national pharmacy chain) or Lloyds (another national pharmacy chain) for £10 – a fraction of what it costs for a machine plus mask. Don't you think that, if a neck-brace alone wuz guaranteed to do the job, then the NHS would be recommending that, to save money?

And they don't.

Now, having said that, there are few patients who find the machine removes most apneas, but there are clusters in their charts which seem resistant to treatment. And It may turn out that these occasional bursts are due to the patient having moved into an odd position, with the head and neck out of alignment with the spine. That is, they have 'positional apnea'. A neck-brace may be helpful in those cases.

But that doesn't mean the neck-brace is sufficient on its own.

And btw, patients who fall into that sub-group are expected to pay for the brace themselves.

[chunkyfrog]

Many of us Yanks consider a soft foam cervical collar to be effective in helping
keep the mouth and jaw in position while using a cpap mask.
So, unofficially, it can be a useful tool, when used WITH CPAP.
I was able to get my insurance to cover it by providing a doctor's prescription.
The DME wanted $36, but they only got $6--
If that is not the case in the UK, the benefit may be well worth the money.

[ChicagoGranny]

soft* cervical collar

*foam

[Topcat]

Cheers everyone

Just seems to be a lot of positive feedback from collars and neck braces. I’ve started using cpap but I believe it’s down to my neck alignment mostly. Don’t want to scare my girlfriend with all this extra equipment in the bedroom without having proof it helps

[ChicagoGranny]

my neck alignment mostly

You probably saw it in some of the threads you read, but just in case, collars help by,

1. Holding the neck/spine/head in the optimal position for airway patency. (Prevents chin dropping toward chest.

2. Helps to prevent jaw-drop. Jaw-drop opens the mouth wide. When the mouth opens, the lower jaw moves slightly back and tends to restrict the airway.

Good luck!

[Topcat]

Thanks much appreciated

[Topcat]

If anyone in England has experience with a doctor advising about wearing a neck brace then let me know

[Janknitz]

Cheers everyone

Just seems to be a lot of positive feedback from collars and neck braces. I’ve started using cpap but I believe it’s down to my neck alignment mostly. Don’t want to scare my girlfriend with all this extra equipment in the bedroom without having proof it helps

And how will you confirm that the cervical collar "cures" your sleep apnea once you try it???

[chunkyfrog]

If you are hoping for an "alternative" to cpap,
everything I have heard about is grossly ineffective.
The forum is called "CPAPtalk" for a reason.
There are people standing by, ready to help you make it work;
and there is somebody here 24-7, eager to help.