When someone has sleep apnoea, their breathing stops repeatedly during sleep. Physiologically speaking, the front wall of the pharynx falls onto the back wall and closes the airways. Then, the body reacts to this emergency with an adrenaline rush, causing the airways to open again. This results in alternating snoring, pauses, and heavy breathing, typical symptoms of sleep apnoea. In addition to snoring, other common symptoms include daytime sleepiness, sudden falling asleep and headaches.
These nocturnal respiratory arrests certainly have a negative impact on daytime mood, but can also lead to serious medical problems like heart attacks, strokes, high blood pressure or brain damage. So, people use breathing devices and dental aligners for treatment. CPAP masks (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) can also help by connecting the mask to a breathing device and supplying air. However, many of those affected – on average one in 20 men and one in 50 women – complain about the lack of comfort of CPAP masks. For this reason, LuxCreo and EMA Sleep have partnered to improve sleep apnoea devices using 3D printing technology.
A common side effect of sleep apnea is suddenly falling asleep during the day.
LuxCreo is known for its pioneering work in the field of digital dentistry, being one of the first 3D printer manufacturers to make it possible to print transparent braces. LuxCreo now wants to use its 3D printing technology to conquer other areas of medical technology. Together with EMA Sleep, the company is therefore working on improving Elastic Mandibular Advancement (EMA) devices. These are custom-made devices that move the lower jaw forward, keeping breathing stable by keeping the airway open. In contrast to the more invasive CPAP masks, EMA devices are supposed to be more comfortable to wear. They can provide relief for mild to moderate sleep apnoea.
With the help of LuxCreo’s 3D printing process, the partners now want to offer a solution to manufacture EMA devices in a clinic and open up avenues for scalability. The 510(k) clearance (K232735) for the 3D printing of EMA devices granted by the FDA (US Food and Drug Administration) just this year plays into the partners’ hands. Additionally, an in-house, FDA-approved resin serves as the base material for the EMA devices. These are printed in the iLux Pro Dental platform adapted for this purpose. The automated workflow should enable on-site, same-day production, so patients do not have to wait long.
The 3D-printed EMA device to treat sleep apnea from LuxCreo and EMA Sleep (Photo credits: LuxCreo)
Sonnie Bocala, manufacturing expert at EMA Sleep, is delighted with the collaboration with LuxCreo: “I can’t praise the entire LuxCreo team enough. True, LuxCreo’s personalized medical device platform solved so many issues for us.” The LuxCreo workflow was a key advantage for EMA Sleep, as Bocala points out: “We also needed a design software solution tailored to the EMA device — and LuxCreo delivered. Whether it was troubleshooting, technical support or responsiveness, I have been extremely impressed with the entire LuxCreo organization.”
Find out more about the collaboration between LuxCreo and EMA Sleep here. What do you think about the use of 3D printing for the treatment of sleep apnea? Let us know in a comment below or on our LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter pages! Don’t forget to sign up for our free weekly Newsletter here, the latest 3D printing news straight to your inbox! You can also find all our videos on our YouTube channel.
*Cover picture credit: Deutsche Familienversicherung