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+--- Thread: [News] Provent Reportedly Goes Out of Business (/Thread-News-Provent-Reportedly-Goes-Out-of-Business)
Provent Reportedly Goes Out of Business - ApneaNews - 03-29-2013
Sleep Apnea Treatment Provent Reportedly Goes Out of Business
By Brandon Peters, M.D
For those who have sought treatment of obstructive sleep apnea with the Provent medical device, it seems that this therapy option will no longer be available as the company in San Jose, California has reportedly gone out of business, according to those familiar with its operations.
Provent consists of a small one-way valve that is secured at the nostril with an adhesive band. It allows a person to breathe in, but the valve closes with exhalation and retains some of the air. Gradually, pressure builds up within the airway. It was theorized that this would keep the airway from collapsing and prevent obstructive sleep apnea. Unfortunately, when the mouth comes open, this pressure gradient can be lost. Treatment effectiveness varied and, in general, Provent is not as successful as continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), though the latter may be less tolerated.
Provent received widespread attention after a blog in The New York Times last year. It was an attractive option for overnight camping and travel in which electricity or a bulky device were less desirable. It also appealed to those who could not tolerate CPAP. Now that the product is unlikely to be available, a remaining alternative option may include the use of an oral appliance that is worn like a retainer at night and moves the lower jaw forward.
Ventus Medical, Inc., the parent company that produces Provent, was contacted directly for comment and to verify the discontinuation of Provent and the telephone line was repeatedly busy with no answer at a second customer service number. More information on this developing story will be provided as it is known.
fair use from:
http://sleepdisorders.about.com/b/2013/03/22/sleep-apnea-treatment-provent-reportedly-goes-out-of-business.htm
RE: Provent Reportedly Goes Out of Business - PaulaO2 - 03-29-2013
Anyone not surprised, raise your hand.
RE: Provent Reportedly Goes Out of Business - jgjones1972 - 03-29-2013
Looks like I was a little late getting an Rx from my doc to try them out. That's probably for the best.
RE: Provent Reportedly Goes Out of Business - SuperSleeper - 03-29-2013
Wasn't wilorg (now DocWils) involved with testing Provent?
Doc, you around? How did all that end up?
RE: Provent Reportedly Goes Out of Business - GaryG - 03-30-2013
My wife's been using Provent, and although I'm skeptical, she swears by them. She's ready for more, so we'll see what happens when she contacts the DME.
RE: Provent Reportedly Goes Out of Business - JJJ - 03-30-2013
(03-30-2013, 06:38 AM)GaryG Wrote: My wife's been using Provent, and although I'm skeptical, she swears by them. She's ready for more, so we'll see what happens when she contacts the DME.
My sleep doc sold me a trial pack of ten. I managed to get to sleep, but woke up an hour later in a panic. I ripped it off so I could breathe. Haven't tried them since. Supposedly they work for some people as long as the apnea is not too severe. I'm not one of those people.
The other problem is that there is no way to tell if the Provent therapy is working or adequate without a sleep lab. You need at least a pulse oximeter to see if they keep your O2 saturation high enough.
RE: Provent Reportedly Goes Out of Business - DocWils - 03-30-2013
I will assume some other medical company will buy up the back stock and the patents. It will appear somewhere still, sometime. Welcome to the economics of cutting edge medical development - around every third start-up survives, and a lot of devices never even see the light of day - those that do often find themselves out of business very soon due to lack of sales.
Was it any good? Maybe, maybe not. Should it go off the market? No, I would rather see them improve it and make it work. Of course, whoever buys it up will probably do some fiddling with it, either improving it or making it worse. Wait and see.
They were pretty aggressive with me when I leaked some info here about the trials and they went out of their way to make me persona non grata at the Unispital Sleep Unit. For a while, anyway - the techs there remain friendly, and slip me replacement parts for my gear pretty regularly, but the docs there really give me the cold shoulder. Makes me glad I work at another hospital.
At any rate, don't count the device out just yet - it will surface again. In the meantime, if you do have an Rx, stock up on all you can. If it works for you.
RE: Provent Reportedly Goes Out of Business - Shastzi - 03-30-2013
How in hell did that piece of quack garbage get past FDA?
RE: Provent Reportedly Goes Out of Business - DocWils - 03-30-2013
Not really sure it would need FDA approval, to be honest - I don't know if the prescription restriction was their idea or was imposed. But their early figures were certainly good enough to get through the initial vetting process. It is just that their later data didn't hold up enough to show it to be an effective replacement for CPAP. It was, however, a possible supplement, at least for short term use and for those who either had a mild enough form that CPAP would be almost overkill, or for those who could not be compliant with the CPAP regimen.
For passive devices, though, the FDA doesn't actually have that much authority, and for what it does have, the standards are far different from active therapeutic devices and certainly from drugs.....
RE: Provent Reportedly Goes Out of Business - Shastzi - 03-30-2013
That is sobering coming from a Swiss M.D. =o.O=
I was hoping they declared the device a diet suppliment.
