What is Sleep Apnea?

Sleep Apneais a disorder characterized by pauses, shallow, and/or infrequent breathing during sleep, whichleads to a reduced oxygen supply to the body. This may result in multiple health issues likedepression, cognitive and cerebrovascular disorders, anxiety, impotence, excessive eating, hormonal imbalances, and even mortality, just to name few. Kids experience symptoms such assnoring, sweating, restlessness, learning disabilities, clumsiness,andmetabolic syndromes.

Sleep is an essential part of our life.It affects how we function, perform, feel and/or look. Most people need 8 hours of quality sleep to repair and heal their bodies daily.

Sleep Apnea Treatments

There are different treatments forSleep Apneaandyour dentist can help.

• Start by talking with a member of ourSleep Teamandtake homeaSleep Study.A fast affordable way to gather informationabout your restless nights.
• Weight loss– Losing weight can help balance your hormones and send signals to your brain indicating that you are not hungry.
• The Continuous Positive Airway Pressure(CPAP) machine uses either a mask or nose prongs to help increase the air pressure in the throat, thereby preventing the airway from collapsing.

• Oral Appliancesresemble a night guard or retainer. These maintain an open, unobstructed airway by preventing the collapse of the tongue and soft tissues in the back of the throat.Oral Appliance Therapy is to treat mild to moderate airway obstruction and a great alternative for those who have a hard time using a CPAP machine.

• When other treatments don’t work, you may considerupper airway surgery. This invasive surgery is site-specific and varies by patient.