tell us about the dental appliance

It's like the mouth guards that football players wear, only it is made to keep your lower jaw forward of your upper jaw so the soft tissues don't relax and prevent you from breathing.

these were popular a whlle ago, they seemed to give a slight improvement only so if your CPAP is on a low pressure, perhaps investigate
get price first

I love my dental device. It is so easy to travel with it and it is easy to use. It is also covered on most insurances.
You have to fave the right type of apnea for it to \work. Also, I have heard that for some people the muscles stretch and the device is no longer effective after several years. As with anything else you have to stay on top of it.

Thanks for all your advice. I have a CPAP Machine, but just cannot get used to using it. I've been trying for about a year. It's very claustrophobic.

try different masks, there are many types

I felt that way too. It felt like couldn't breath. I tried several different masks and went back for another sleep test. I kept waking up more than before without the CPAP

My dentist has a sign in his office to ask him about a dental appliance to use instead of a c-pap. He told me that my pressure has to be very low for it to work. Since my machine is set on 18, I'm obviously not a candidate lol Very disappointing. I agree that you need to try different masks. Something new is always coming down the pike. Good Luck!

I used a dental appliance, the kind that keeps your lower jaw thrust somewhat forward, for a couple of months before I got my CPAP machine a few months ago
A local dentist took impressions and Glidewell Laboratories made the device. It's called a "myerson ema" appliance. Glidewell had a Web sie at www.glidewelldental.com .
The dental appliance did work. That is, it completely stopped the apnea I was suffering in sleep stage 1, and probably stopped the apnea in other stages, though I don't know that for sure. I was able to sleep with the device in place, although it was somewhat uncomfortable and my jaw was somewhat sore in the mornings. (I usually woke without headache or sore throat.)
For the past few months I've used the CPAP machine, which I find preferable. It's good to have the dental device on hand. I can see that eventually my bite will change and the device will no longer fit.
For some reason I wanted to use it again one night fairly recently, but that week my gums were swollen in one part of my mouth, and so the dental device was acutely painful the moment I inserted it--so painful that it was impossible to use it that night.
The device has its upper and lower parts attached by elastic straps. The straps are available in varying firmnesses. The local dentist wanted to charge me for an office visit each time I needed new straps (they stretch, and they break), but I persevered in saying I didn't need a $90 office visit at that time; I needed a few elastic straps at something like $3 per strap.
(There's a different kind of device that thrusts your tongue forward. I haven't tried that. It looks like it would dry out one's tongue and one's mouth, but I don't know for sure.)

P.S. If the time comes when I'm traveling for a brief period and need to pack light, it will be preferable to pack the dental device (small, lightweight) instead of the CPAP machine.