DETERMINING A LEVEL OF COMPLIANCE USING A DEVICE FOR TREATMENT OF DISORDERED BREATHING

1 . A device comprising:

a number of contacts adapted to make electrical contact with portions of an oral cavity of a patient and configured to provide a first signal indicative of one or more states of the patient's upper airway; and

a control circuit coupled to the contacts and configured to:

determine a presence of disordered breathing in the patient based, at least in part, on the first signal;

provide electrical stimulation to a portion of the patient's upper airway, via the number of contacts, based on the presence of disordered breathing in the patient; and

determine a level of compliance of the patient's use of the device based, at least in part, on the first signal.

2 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the control circuit is configured to determine the level of compliance by:

determining an impedance level between at least two of the contacts; and

determining whether the device is located at least partially within the patient's oral cavity based, at least in part, on the determined impedance level.

3 . The device of claim 2 , wherein the control circuit is further configured to:

detect a state of compliance based on the determined impedance level being less than a value; and

detect a state of non-compliance based on the determined impedance level being greater than or equal to the value.

4 . The device of claim 3 , wherein the control circuit is further configured to:

determine a first portion of a time period associated with the detected state of compliance;

determine a second portion of the time period associated with the detected state of non-compliance; and

generate an indication of compliance or non-compliance based on a comparison between the first and second portions.

5 . The device of claim 4 , wherein the control circuit is further configured to:

transmit, to a remote compliance monitoring device, either the indication of compliance or the indication of non-compliance.

6 . The device of claim 1 , wherein a portion of two of the contacts are adapted to be positioned posterior to a last molar location of the patient.

7 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the electrical stimulation is configured to target the patient's Palatoglossus muscle and to avoid targeting the patient's Hypoglossal nerve.

8 . The device of claim 1 , wherein:

the device comprises a sensor configured to provide a second signal indicating an amount of airflow in the patient's upper airway; and

the control circuit is configured to determine the presence of disordered breathing based on the first signal and the second signal.

9 . The device of claim 8 , wherein:

the first signal is indicative of at least one of electrical activity in the patient's upper airway, movement of the patient's upper airway, and a change in the patient's respiration rate; and

the second signal is indicative of at least one of an amount of airflow in the patient's upper airway, a movement of the patient's chest, a movement of the patient's abdomen, a movement in the patient's jaw, an oxygenation level, and a heartrate.

10 . A method comprising:

receiving, from a number of contacts positioned within an oral cavity of a patient, a first signal indicative of one or more states of the patient's upper airway;

determining a presence of disordered breathing in the patient based, at least in part, on the first signal;

providing electrical stimulation to a portion of the patient's upper airway, via the number of contacts, based on the presence of disordered breathing in the patient; and

determining a level of compliance of the patient's use of the device based, at least in part, on the first signal.

11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein determining the level of compliance comprises:

determining an impedance level between at least two of the contacts; and

determining whether the device is located at least partially within the patient's oral cavity based, at least in part, on the determined impedance level.

12 . The method of claim 11 , further comprising:

detecting a state of compliance based on the determined impedance level being less than a value; and

detecting a state of non-compliance based on the determined impedance level being greater than or equal to the value.

13 . The method of claim 12 , further comprising:

determining a first portion of a time period associated with the detected state of compliance;

determining a second portion of the time period associated with the detected state of non-compliance; and

generating an indication of compliance or non-compliance based on a comparison between the first and second portions.

14 . The method of claim 13 , further comprising:

transmitting, to a remote compliance monitoring device, either the indication of compliance or the indication of non-compliance.

15 . The method of claim 10 , wherein a portion of two of the contacts are adapted to be positioned posterior to a last molar location of the patient.

16 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the electrical stimulation is configured to target the patient's Palatoglossus muscle and to avoid targeting the patient's Hypoglossal nerve.

17 . The method of claim 10 , further comprising:

receiving, from one or more sensors, a second signal indicating an amount of airflow in the patient's upper airway, wherein determining the presence of disordered breathing is based on the first signal and the second signal.

18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein:

the first signal is indicative of at least one of electrical activity in the patient's upper airway, movement of the patient's upper airway, and a change in the patient's respiration rate; and

the second signal is indicative of at least one of an amount of airflow in the patient's upper airway, a movement of the patient's chest, a movement of the patient's abdomen, a movement in the patient's jaw, an oxygenation level, and a heartrate.