Device to reduce or prevent night clenching and grinding of teet

Details Device to reduce or prevent night clenching and grinding of teet Device to reduce or prevent night clenching and grinding of teet

1995-06-22

1997-09-16

Rimell, Sam

Surgery

Body protecting or restraining devices for patients or infants

Antisnoring device

128861, 128860, A61F 556

Patent

active

056669739

DESCRIPTION:

BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a device designed for the purpose of preventing or reducing night clenching and grinding of the teeth or snoring.
2. Description of the Related Art
Several methods have been experimented with to impede snoring and other unarticulated sounds unconsciously uttered during one's sleep. The essential feature of these methods is to provide an unobstructed air passage between the tongue (root of the tongue) and the palate (especially the soft part of it) by means of a mechanism preventing the tongue and palate from getting shut up against each other. Devices of such kind have been described in the patent specifications EP A 0182387, DE 407949 and U.S. Pat. No. 3132647. From these methods the one mentioned first causes the least discomfort to the patient, but it is rather complicated. According to this method an acrylate resin bar is attached to both sides of the upper rear molars through an acrylate resin spacer in the rear region of the hard palate. This arrangement is, to some extent, capable of preventing snoring, but its use is inconvenient, and it is rather complicated and costly to prepare. Furthermore, it is unsuitable for reducing or preventing the night grinding and excessive clenching of the teeth.


SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The aim to be achieved is, by eliminating the above deficiencies, to provide for a method simpler, easier to get accustomed to and more convenient in its use than those of earlier designs, the device being capable, at the same time or additionally, of preventing snoring, reducing or impeding night grinding or excessive clenching of the teeth.
The device developed for achieving the above aim is a shell-like or conchiform element convex at its outside and concave at its inner side, with its inner surface matching to the shape of the tip of the tongue and with its outer surface to the shape of the lower and upper rows of teeth and to that of the palate.
No clamping element is applied for fixing the above means either to the tongue or to the rows of teeth or to the palate, the invention being based on the recognition that no fixing is required after a short period of getting accustomed to said properly shaped element placed into the mouth, said means being kept in place, even in the unconscious state of sleeping, owing to the excellent innervating capability of the tongue. Even in the case of a slight displacement of said element, the conditional reflex becomes active to bring about the adjustments required for restoring proper position of the element. The corrective intervention of this reflex becomes increasingly effective after a not too long period of using the element.
By the same recognition, such a conchiform means is equally suitable for impeding or preventing the grinding and clenching of the teeth.
The element serving for the prevention of snoring is provided with an anti-tilting extension, preventing the element complying with the present invention from excessive tilting even with the mouth widely opened.
The outer arch of the element serving for impeding the grinding of the teeth is tightly fitted to the inside of the row of teeth in the direction perpendicular to that or the bit, preventing thereby lateral relative displacement between upper and lower rows of the teeth (in the direction of grinding).
The element impeding the clenching of the teeth is designed to fit the cavity of the mouth being in a slightly opened state, i.e. with an arch in the plane of the direction of the bite, tightly fitting to the shape of the rows of teeth and palate in slightly opened position of the mouth. Owing to this shape of the element upon clenching of the teeth, an uncomfortable feeling of pressure arises in the mouth instinctively relieved by slight opening of the mouth, even while asleep.


BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention and its further features and advantages will be described with reference to the embodiments shown as examples in the attached drawings. In the drawing:
FIG. 1 is an embodim

REFERENCES:
patent: D32565 (1900-04-01), Hooper
patent: D300059 (1989-02-01), Pier
patent: 3132647 (1964-05-01), Corniello
patent: 3692025 (1972-09-01), Greenberg
patent: 3871370 (1975-03-01), McDonald
patent: 4304227 (1981-12-01), Samelson
patent: 4676240 (1987-06-01), Gardy
patent: 4997182 (1991-03-01), Kussick
patent: 5042506 (1991-08-01), Liberati
patent: 5092346 (1992-03-01), Hays et al.

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