Sleep Apnea Dental Device - Help Now

Sleep Apnea Dental Device

If you have sleep apnea and have trouble using a CPAP, or a continuous positive airway pressure, machine while you sleep, you may be a good candidate for a sleep apnea dental device to treat your sleep apnea. Some people do not even know they have sleep apnea unless they have someone in their life that is with them when they sleep and can tell them they have it.

To confirm this then you should get a referral from your doctor to have a sleep study. A sleep study will pinpoint just how many episodes of sleep apnea you actually have during the night, how long they last and figure out just how severe your condition is.

Sleep apnea is a serious condition in which a person stops breathing during sleep for a few seconds up to as long as a minute and upon resuming normal breathing snorts or snores loudly. Sleep apnea occurs many times during the night and can cause the person afflicted with this disorder to not get sufficient rest at night and can contribute to a type of chronic fatigue.

Chronic fatigue can cause you to not be as sharp mentally as you need to be during the day and at work, which can end up affecting your daily life in many negative ways. Decreased productivity at work can cause you to lose your job or inattentive driving can cause you to have an accident and injure yourself or someone else.

One way to combat the effects of sleep apnea is to wear a sleep apnea dental device. These devices mold to your mouth and hold your tongue and palate in place, keeping your airway open so you can breathe throughout the night and wake up rested and rejuvenated.

These dental devices are used mainly in the treatment of mild to moderate sleep apnea in patients not are not dealing with obesity who cannot use the CPAP machine at night due to claustrophobia or other forms of intolerance to the equipment and can reduce the severity of sleep apnea by up to 60%.

There are two main types of dental devices for the treatment of sleep apnea. The first is a tongue repositioning device and is custom fitted to the patient's lower jaw and works by raising the soft palate and keeping the tongue from falling back and blocking the patient's airway.

The second dental device is called a mandibular repositioning device which actually repositions the jaw creating much needed space behind the tongue therefore keeping the airway open, reducing the frequency of the sleep apnea and also greatly reduces snoring. You will need to be closely monitored by your dentist to maintain the fit of the device and make sure it is working properly.

Sleep apnea can occur up to 30 times or more per hour when you are sleeping and severe cases may require surgery as a corrective measure, especially in cases in which the patient is diagnosed with blockages in their nose or throat.

The dental devices available are very effective in the treatment of mild to moderate sleep apnea but the patient may complain of tooth pain, mouth or jaw soreness. Your dentist will tell you that these side effects should subside and you will get used to the sleep apnea dental device in a few weeks to a few months.

Maryjane Angelo

Sleep Apnea Definition - 3 Types Of Sleep Apnea

3 Types Of Sleep Apnea

Sleep apnea definition is a sleep disorder characterized by the stoppage of breathing while sleeping from 10 to 60 seconds and gasping for breath or snorting or snoring when breathing is resumed.

There are three types of sleep apnea. Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Central Sleep Apnea, and Complex Sleep Apnea. Each are caused by different factors but both can lead to serious complications up to and including death.

Obstructive sleep apnea is characterized by the tongue and muscles of the throat relaxing to the point of blocking the airway during sleep possibly caused by obesity. Men over the age of 40 who are considered overweight or obese are the most affected by this type of sleep apnea. This is not to say that women cannot also be afflicted with the same disorder it is just more prevalent in men.

Central sleep apnea definition is characterized by a defect in the respiratory center in the brain being unable to transmit the correct signals to the muscles responsible for breathing to initiate a breath.

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Some people can suffer from a combination of these two types and this is called Complex Sleep Apnea. Anyone of any age can be affected by sleep apnea, even children. Premature babies are most likely to be subject to sleep apnea because their lung function is impaired due to being premature.

The premature infant is usually sent home with a device called an apnea monitor and is kept on the monitor until approximately two weeks after true gestational age is reached and their doctor deems it safe for them to be removed from monitoring.

If you suspect your spouse has sleep apnea, watch them for a few nights in a row and record what you observe. Snoring is not always caused by sleep apnea but can be a sign of obstructive sleep apnea and that if it gets worse or is loud enough to wake the dead, you should consult your doctor about it.

Typical sufferers of sleep apnea actually stop breathing frequently throughout the night with as many as 30 episodes or more with gasps or snorts heard when breathing resumes. Keep an ear open to how many times this happens during a one hour period and also if the way they are breathing wakes them up frequently. Night sweats are a frequent occurrence with people with sleep apnea, especially complex sleep apnea.

Also as a part of your record, note how your spouse feels during the day. Are they tired, irritable, impatient, feel depressed or have frequent mood swings during the day? Do they wake with a headache or dry, sore throat? If they do this probably means they are not getting good rest during the night and should see their doctor to talk about sleep apnea and possibly enter into a sleep study to confirm or rule out sleep apnea.

Treatment for sleep apnea may include a CPAP machine that you wear at night, a mouth guard, or in the most severe cases of obstructive sleep apnea, surgery may be needed. Talk to your doctor about your sleep apnea definition to find out what your best option is.

Maryjane Angelo