Looking for a good night’s sleep? Do you or your partner snore significantly or stop breathing while sleeping? Sleep apnea is a serious, chronic medical condition and a recognized sleep disorder, not just a symptom of snoring. It involves repeated interruptions in breathing during sleep, which can lead to low blood oxygen levels and serious long-term health complications if left untreated.
Sleep apnea is quite prevalent – recent statistics find approximately 12 million people in the US have some degree of sleep apnea. While it is more prevalent in older individuals, it can also occur in young adults and even children. Sleep apnea occurs when the airway is obstructed by the tongue and soft tissues of the throat and oropharynx during sleep.
When the airway is constricted, oxygen is not getting into the lungs for circulation to the rest of the body. The brain senses this and the heart rate and blood pressure increase significantly. Have you ever held your breath under water for as long as you can, until finally you reach that point where you absolutely have to breathe? Your heart starts racing and your blood pressure increases. This is what happens in sleep apnea.
Sleep apnea more than doubles the risk of heart attacks, and increases the risk of strokes, depression, diabetes, hypertension, gastric reflux, drossiness and ADHD in children. This can lead to stressed relationships, accidents, and even poor grades in students.
Signs and symptoms of sleep apnea can include excessive daytime sleepiness, awakening at night gasping or choking, awakening with headaches. It can even include insomnia as the body recognizes that you stop breathing when you go to sleep, and it doesn’t want that to happen.
If any of these symptoms are common to you, it is important to see us or your physician, so that you can be assessed and a diagnosis provided. Options for sleep studies primarily start with in-home assessments, in the comfort of your own bed.
Fortunately, these days there are multiple treatment options for sleep apnea.
Non-surgical options not only include the traditional, obtrusive CPAP machines, but also dental appliances called Mandibular Advancement Splints (MAS). MAS has a significantly higher patient acceptance rate is a lot more comfortable and easy to travel with. It functions by keeping the airway open, allowing you to breathe normally.
At Springfield Smiles, we not only provide great dental care for the entire family, but we also routinely screen our patients for potential sleep apnea. We work with a team of physicians to diagnose and treat as required. If diagnosed, we can custom fabricate a neuromuscular balanced MAS to treat your sleep apnea. The neuromuscular balanced bite position is critically important as it is necessary to identify and keep your jaw in the correct position so as not to create long term jaw joint dysfunction, commonly known as TMJ. In fact, it is so important that Dr. Victor did not treat sleep apnea for years, as he knew it could create jaw joint issues. It wasn’t until Dr. Victor trained with a team of experts that addressed and resolved TMJ issues, that he began to apply the same technology to treat sleep apnea. And since 2018, he has been helping numerous patients treat and avoid TMJ problems, as well as helping sleep apnea patients get a much better nights rest.
Call our office today at 937-390-3077 for a free sleep apnea consult. And feel free to call our office just to set up a regular cleaning or dental appointment too!
