Sleep Apnea & Airway Obstruction

Common Warning Signs of Sleep Apnea

Sleep apnea is a serious condition that can significantly impact your health and quality of life. It occurs when your airway becomes partially or completely blocked during sleep, leading to repeated interruptions in breathing for 10-20 seconds at a time. Recognizing the warning signs of sleep apnea is crucial for seeking timely treatment. 

Undiagnosed sleep apnea can result in:

• Loud snoring: A telltale sign of sleep apnea, especially when it is accompanied by gasping or choking sounds.
• Excessive daytime sleepiness: If you find yourself constantly tired during the day, even after a full night’s sleep, it could be due to sleep apnea disrupting your rest.
• Morning headaches: Frequent headaches upon waking can be a result of poor oxygen flow during sleep.
• Difficulty concentrating: Sleep apnea can lead to cognitive issues, making it hard to focus or remember things.
• Mood changes: Irritability, depression, and anxiety are often linked to the sleep disturbances caused by sleep apnea.

If you experience any of these symptoms, it’s important to consult with our sleep apnea dentists. Prior to undergoing any type of treatment, you will be diagnosed by a sleep apnea physician and referred back to our office for treatment. Early detection can prevent the condition from worsening and reduce the risk of associated health complications, such as high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke.

How Different Treatment Approaches Can Help

There are several effective treatment options available for managing sleep apnea and improving airway obstruction. The primary methods used by our dentists include:

• Oral Appliances: Custom-fitted mandibular advancement splints (MAS) like SomnoMed® and TAP® appliances can be highly effective in treating sleep apnea, particularly for those with mild to moderate cases. These devices work by altering the position of your jaw or tongue to help keep your airway open during sleep. By preventing the airway from collapsing, we can reduce or eliminate the pauses in breathing that characterize sleep apnea. They are easy to use, comfortable, and often a good alternative for patients who find CPAP machines uncomfortable.
• Facial Injections: In some cases, facial injections can be used to relax muscles around the airway, reducing the likelihood of airway obstruction. This treatment can be particularly beneficial for patients with certain types of sleep apnea or for those who experience jaw clenching or grinding that contributes to airway blockage. The injections are minimally invasive and can provide long-lasting relief from symptoms.

It should be noted that prior to receiving your oral appliance, we will take an impression of your mouth to create a temporary MyTap™ mouthpiece. While this itself may improve minor symptoms of sleep apnea, we commonly use it as a temporary solution for patients to become accustomed to using an oral appliance. This way, patients can experience a mouthpiece prior to investing in the more advanced SomnoMed or TAP treatments.

Once patients are comfortable and ready for more thorough treatment, we will move forward with creating a precise model of your mouth, and send the results to a lab for the creation of your customized appliance.