What’s the Most Effective Treatment for Sleep Apnea?

Do you wake up feeling extremely exhausted even after a good night’s rest? Or are you having sore throats nearly every morning? Does this describe your circumstance? If it is, then there is a chance that you need to come to our sleep apnea clinic to get checked.

Sleep apnea is a very subtle sleep disorder that can creep on you. You might not notice the symptoms, and there is a chance that you will dismiss the symptoms as something else. This is what makes the disease even more dangerous.

Sleep apnea affects millions of people, and it is suspected that many more are suffering from the condition and don’t even know it yet. The fabulous news is that there are several ways to treat or manage the condition. when it is diagnosed

About Sleep Apnea

In a nutshell, sleep apnea is a prevalent sleep disorder that mainly affects how you breathe when you are sleeping. You may have many breathing pauses or interruptions throughout the night. At times, you may even stop breathing close to a hundred times in one night. The worst part is that you might not even notice that there are any interruptions.

The disorder comes about when the soft tissues at the back of your mouth collapse. When they collapse, they block the upper airway, and this is what causes loud snoring. You might have noticed that you will wake up in the middle of the night with a gasping sound, snorting, or even choking. You might be sleeping lightly because of continuous sleep disruptions.

Besides fatigue, other issues may arise because of sleep apnea. This is because your body has been deprived of oxygen most of the night. In fact, there is a link between sleep apnea and high blood pressure, diabetes, and other overall health conditions.

Two main types of sleep apnea exist:

• OSA (obstructive sleep apnea). Most patients who have sleep apnea suffer from OSA. This is caused by the collapse of soft tissues and blockage of the upper airways
• CSA (Central sleep apnea). This is a less prevalent form of sleep apnea and is different from OSA. The interruption of breathing is caused by a failure of the brain’s respiratory control center to signal the muscles to breathe

Sleep Apnea Risks

Virtually anyone can suffer from sleep apnea, even children. However, some risk factors may increase your chances of getting sleep apnea, and they are:

• Smoking
• Being male
• Being above 40 years
• Family history
• Being overweight or obese
• Large overbite or recessed chin
• Large tonsils or large tongue with a small jaw
• Nasal blockage because of allergies
• Having a large neck size that is more than 17 inches in men and 16 plus inches in women

How Is Sleep Apnea Treated?

You should peel your eyes for sleep apnea, especially if you are in the high-risk category. If sleep apnea is not addressed, you may have to deal with other severe health issues.

The mode of treatment is highly dependent on the severity of the sleep disorder and its cause. The whole idea of seeking treatment is to normalize your breathing while you are sleeping. Therefore, our dentist may recommend:

Lifestyle Changes

If you have mild sleep apnea, our dentist in Coppell, TX, may recommend lifestyle changes that may help treat obstructive sleep apnea. Some lifestyle changes may include:

• Reducing or avoiding alcohol
• Stop smoking
• Weight loss
• Side sleeping
• Treating nasal allergies

Sleep Apnea Treatment Without CPAP

When most patients have sleep apnea, their doctors may recommend that they use a CPAP machine. the continuous Positive Airway Pressure machine is designed to give you constant pressurized air so that your airways remain open. However, there are reasons for not using CPAP, such as:

• Cost
• Compliance requirements
• Side effects such as dry, stuffy, or runny nose, dry mouth, etc.

The excellent news is that there are still excellent alternative sleep apnea treatments such as intraoral appliances. This intraoral appliance is designed to keep the jaw thrust forward and opens up your airways to ensure that you breathe as normal.

The appliance is customized so that it perfectly fits in your mouth. These appliances are comfortable, silent, easy to use, portable, and less expensive than the CPAP machine. They are the best solutions for mild and moderate OSA.

If you suspect that you have sleep apnea, contact our dentist near you at Compassion Smiles Dentistry to get checked and treated.