If you struggle to sleep well, snore loudly, or have extreme daytime fatigue, it could be because of a sleep disorder called sleep apnea. At LA Dentists Group in Pasadena and Glendale, California, the skilled cosmetic and prosthodontic practitioners treat sleep apnea to help you breathe easier at night and let you and your partner sleep soundly. Call the office to schedule an evaluation at LA Dentists Group or use the request appointment online feature today.
request an appointmentWhat is sleep apnea?
Sleep apnea is a common sleep disorder that affects your airway and breathing while you sleep. It also reduces sleep quality, which can lead to an array of unpleasant symptoms.
Sleep apnea makes airway muscles relax, obstructs airflow, and may cause pauses in breathing for up to 10 seconds during sleep. These pauses could happen 30 times per hour when left untreated.
Fortunately, the LA Dentists Group team offers oral appliance therapy for sleep apnea to improve airflow, reduce snoring, and help you get a better night’s rest.
What are the symptoms of sleep apnea?
The symptoms associated with sleep apnea include:
- Loud snoring
- Daytime fatigue
- Morning headaches
- Dry mouth in the morning
- Reduced ability to concentrate
- Irritability
- Gasping for air during sleep
Daytime fatigue associated with sleep apnea increases your risk of poor work or school performance and car accidents.
If it goes untreated, sleep apnea is associated with a higher risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, weight gain, and even strokes.
A doctor can diagnose sleep apnea based on your symptoms, medical history, and the results of a sleep study.
What are the sleep apnea risk factors?
Common sleep apnea risk factors include:
- Carrying excess body weight
- Being a man
- Family history of sleep apnea
- Alcohol and sedative use
- Narrow airway
- Thick neck
- Some medical conditions
- Nasal congestion
- Smoking
Smokers are three times more likely than non-smokers to have sleep apnea.
Medical conditions that increase your chance of sleep apnea include high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, congestive heart failure, Parkinson’s disease, and polycystic ovary syndrome in women. Your risk is also higher if you’ve had a stroke or have a lung disease, a hormone disorder, or asthma.
Adopting healthy habits can reduce the chance of developing sleep apnea, but you may not be able to avoid it.
How is sleep apnea treated?
After you’ve been diagnosed with sleep apnea, LA Dentists Group offers an alternative to continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), which uses a breathing device that many patients find uncomfortable.
Instead, the LA Dentists Group team provides custom-fitted, noninvasive oral appliance therapy recommended by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Oral devices are highly effective for mild or moderate sleep apnea, and they’re more comfortable than CPAP treatment.
You might receive an elastic mandibular advancement (EMA) appliance, dorsal appliance, or another type of comfortable oral appliance to wear in your mouth when you sleep. It repositions your jaw to improve airflow and breathing. Take the appliance out of your mouth after you wake up.
Your LA Dentists Group dentist digitally scans your mouth to develop a custom-fitted device that matches your personalized needs.
To get treated for sleep apnea using a pain-free oral appliance, call the LA Dentists Group office or request an appointment online today.