Sleep Apnea
Sleep Comfortably By Eliminating Obstructive Sleep Apnea!
Our practices takes pride in providing the highest quality care for our patients suffering from sleep apnea and related conditions. Our goal is to provide our patients with the necessary treatment to bring them the rest they deserve. There is no longer a need for an uncomfortable and cumbersome CPAP machine – an oral appliance may be all you need to overcome sleep apnea.
What is sleep apnea?
Sleep apnea is a condition in which your breathing repeatedly stops and starts throughout the course of the night while you’re asleep. If you wake up tired each night, or if your partner complains about snoring and loud noises while you’re in bed, you may be suffering from sleep apnea.
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is the most common form of sleep apnea. This involves the uvula and the throat muscles – when the throat muscles relax, the uvula can obstruct the airway. You aren’t able to get enough oxygen and your brain wakes you up, but the period of awakening is usually brief and not alerting. You may experience dozens of these apneic events throughout the night until you fully wake up.
Sleep Apnea and TMJ
Sleep apnea can be connected to TMJ disorder. If the temporomandibular joint is off-center, deformed, or in any other way misaligned, the jaw and bite can be off, too. This can lead the tongue sitting improperly in the mouth or the airway being naturally narrower.
What are symptoms of sleep apnea?
Many symptoms of sleep apnea are identifiable upon waking up. Take note of how you feel in the morning; if numerous symptoms line up, it’s best to schedule a consultation with Dr. Solomon to set up a sleep test.
- Frequent or loud snoring
- Cessation of breathing during sleep
- Gasping for air
- Dry mouth
- Sore throat
- Headache
- Insomnia
- Fatigue
- Difficulty paying attention
- Irritability due to low quality sleep
- Personality changes
- Mood swings
- Restlessness during sleep
- Frequent nighttime awakenings
- Frequent nighttime urination
- Night sweats
- Reduced sex drive and/or sexual dysfunction
- Bruxism, or teeth grinding
Diagnosing Sleep Apnea
To diagnose sleep apnea, there must be more than recognition of symptoms. At CCIND, we use highly advanced technology to test our patients.
Our practice uses the FDA-approved Eccovision Acoustic Pharyngometer / Rhinometer system from Sleep Group Solutions to test our patients’ nasal and oral airways. Sound waves are sent into the airway and reflected back, which allows the machine to interpret the size of the airway. The Rhinometer measures the nasal airway and the Pharyngometer measures the oral airway. The system is a highly effective way to identify any collapse in the airway, and thus, recognize sleep apnea.
We also incorporate the ARES System (Apnea Risk Evaluation System) to diagnose sleep apnea. This is a device that fits like a baseball cap around the patient’s head. It can be worn at home while the patient sleeps and records detailed information about sleep quality, apneic events, and breathing troubles. The information is then interpreted and used to help diagnose sleep apnea.
Finally, it’s highly recommended to take the sleep health test, an online tool that analyzes your responses about your sleep quality.
Sleep Apnea Help from Dr. Solomon
For help treating sleep apnea and TMJ disorder, pay Dr. Solomon a visit. You should not have to wake up feeling tired or suffer through restless sleep anymore. If TMJ disorder is contributing to your sleep apnea, Dr. Solomon can identify it and help treat it.
Give us a call today to set up an appointment.
