Do you find it hard to focus or concentrate during the day? Do suffer from depression or anxiety? Do you struggle with chronic fatigue? More importantly, have you been accused of snoring loudly during the night? You may not realize that you suffer from sleep apnea. Dr. Eric Buck and Dr. Hannah Burton have solution for patients struggling with this sleep disorder. Your dentists in Dublin discuss sleep apnea.
What is Sleep Apnea?
Sleep apnea is a dangerous sleep disorder that occurs when you stop breathing during the night due to an airway obstruction. The lack of oxygen signals your brain to wake you up, and this can happen hundreds of times during the night without you even realizing that you’re waking up. Your body however, suffers from the lack of rest and rejuvenation that it needs during the night, causing a host of symptoms such as:
- Frequent headaches or migraines
- Irritability
- Difficulty concentrating or focusing during the day
- Weight gain
- Depression
- Loud snoring
Sleep apnea can be hard to diagnose since it happens at night while you sleep. Your bed partner can report if you’re snoring, and you can also participate in a sleep study to determine if you suffer from sleep apnea. During a sleep study, a machine will measure your breathing and how many times you wake up during the night.
How is Sleep Apnea Treated?
The standard of care for sleep apnea is continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP. While it’s effective, CPAP therapy requires you to wear a mask at night while you sleep and many patients find it uncomfortable or claustrophobic. For these reasons, many patients are not able to utilize their CPAP machine.
At Distinctive Smiles of Dublin, our doctors offer alternative treatment for sleep apnea with oral appliance therapy. We’ll customize an oral appliance to slightly reposition your jaw and open your airway, allowing you to breath freely during the night.
Oral appliances are comfortable to wear, and may replace CPAP therapy for patients who suffer from mild to moderate sleep apnea. For patients with severe sleep apnea, a combination of CPAP and oral appliance therapy may be beneficial.
If it’s left untreated, sleep apnea contributes to a number of other health issues such as diabetes, heart failure, stroke, and high blood pressure. If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with sleep apnea, we encourage you to contact Distinctive Smiles of Dublin to learn more about how we can help you manage your condition.
If you’re ready to reclaim your health and your rest, give us a call today!