Snorers: We’ll Fight them on the Beaches
By Hayley Birch
Scientists battling to bring an end to snoring have adopted a new weapon: the earplug!
This isn’t any old earplug mind you, this is a high-tech earplug used by the military, and Norwegian scientists say it may be able to offer sufferers a decent night’s sleep. If you’ve ever shared a bed with someone prone to bouts of nocturnal acoustics, you’ll appreciate their efforts.
However, sleep trouble is more than just a nuisance to bedfellows. Both snorers and snorees (technical term) can suffer disturbed sleep patterns that can make them a worrying eight times more likely to be involved in a road accident. So there’s good reason to call in the troops on this issue.
Quiet Pro combines a mini computer, loudspeaker and microphones, all small enough to fit snugly in the ear, and connected to recording equipment. The device should be able to help determine what type of snoring is occurring (you’d be surprised at the complexity of snore-classification), and hopefully, how to get rid of them.
Volume, frequency and patterns of breathing and snoring are recorded and researchers intend to use the data to decide what, if any, surgical intervention is required. 22 people have so far tested the earplug, with better results than previous more uncomfortable sensors. The project involves cross-disciplinary collaboration between SINTEF ICT, SINTEF Health Research and the Ear, Nose and Throat Department at St. Olav’s Hospital.
Snorers will, quite literally, be able to breathe easy if this nifty little gadget lives up to expectations.
This isn’t any old earplug mind you, this is a high-tech earplug used by the military, and Norwegian scientists say it may be able to offer sufferers a decent night’s sleep. If you’ve ever shared a bed with someone prone to bouts of nocturnal acoustics, you’ll appreciate their efforts.
However, sleep trouble is more than just a nuisance to bedfellows. Both snorers and snorees (technical term) can suffer disturbed sleep patterns that can make them a worrying eight times more likely to be involved in a road accident. So there’s good reason to call in the troops on this issue.
Quiet Pro combines a mini computer, loudspeaker and microphones, all small enough to fit snugly in the ear, and connected to recording equipment. The device should be able to help determine what type of snoring is occurring (you’d be surprised at the complexity of snore-classification), and hopefully, how to get rid of them.
Volume, frequency and patterns of breathing and snoring are recorded and researchers intend to use the data to decide what, if any, surgical intervention is required. 22 people have so far tested the earplug, with better results than previous more uncomfortable sensors. The project involves cross-disciplinary collaboration between SINTEF ICT, SINTEF Health Research and the Ear, Nose and Throat Department at St. Olav’s Hospital.
Snorers will, quite literally, be able to breathe easy if this nifty little gadget lives up to expectations.
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