Monday, October 26, 2015

Sleep Apnea: How Dental Appliances Help Patients Breathe Easier

Patients with sleep apnea face a number of complications from the condition, including interfering with daily health and wellness. But sleep apnea treatment should help provide solutions, not create more problems with bulky and uncomfortable equipment.

Dr. Plasch’s dental appliances for sleep apnea help patients enjoy relief from bothersome side-effects of this health issue by accomplishing the following:

Holding the Jaw in Position – Sleep apnea dental appliances are fabricated to hold your jaw at a slightly forward angle. By doing this, the soft tissue collapse in the back of the throat that prevents successful breathing during sleep is shifted. With the jaw in position, it’s not necessary for patients with mild sleep apnea to have air pumped into passages, as is experienced with a CPAP machine.

Promoting Free Flow of Air – With soft tissues prevented from blocking airways, sleep apnea patients can breathe more easily. As disruption in air flow is what causes sleep apnea patients to awaken several times a night, facilitating free and open air passages allows patients to breathe without obstruction.

Prevention of Secondary Issues –Sleep apnea patients fight to intake air throughout the night and may therefore alternate between sleep and wakefulness hundreds of times in an evening. Patients can also grind their teeth and snore as they deal with an inability to breathe successfully while sleeping. But with a sleep apnea oral appliance from our Hayward dental office, patients enjoy more restful sleep and do not engage in frequent secondary issues that can cause problems for dental health and over all wellness.

No Facemasks, Forced Air, or Bulky Equipment

Compared to CPAP, oral appliance therapy for sleep apnea provides a more convenient, portable, and comfortable solution to those with minor and moderate disruptive sleep problems. With the oral appliance, there are no components covering your face, no straps to adjust over the top of your head, and no forced air – which can create dry mouth and is often difficult to tolerate. Dental appliances for sleep apnea can be held in the palm of your hand and are no more complicated to wear than a traditional dental retainer.
If you have questions about how oral appliance therapy can alleviate your sleep apnea symptoms, please call our office for your consultation. We are able to perform initial sleep apnea screenings in-office to help your sleep physician better diagnose and recommend treatment for your disordered sleep breathing condition.

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