Albertville, AL
Sleep apnea is an airway obstruction disorder that impedes airflow while sleeping. Unfortunately, people with sleep apnea often do not know that they have it because obvious symptoms like snoring occur at night and, unless someone tells you that you’re a snorer, you may not know that you have this issue. You might be wondering, what do Albertville dentists have to do with sleep apnea? That’s exactly the question that we will answer on our newest blog today.
Our dentists at Wall Street Dentistry have specialized training in airway health. While we do not formally diagnose sleep apnea or conduct official sleep studies, we have immense knowledge and understanding of the jaw and airway and how the orofacial muscles affect airflow. This specialization in the dental field is known as neuromuscular dentistry, which focuses on how oral posture affects the rest of the body, especially the jaw joints and airway.
How dentists screen for sleep apnea
If you are a snorer or believe that you may have sleep apnea, we can screen for sleep apnea by examining your airway to determine the cause of the airway blockage. In some cases, a patient’s lower jaw recesses too far back when lying down, causing the tongue to slide to the back of the throat, blocking airflow. Other cases of sleep apnea may be caused by enlarged tonsils or adenoids, or excess fat deposits around the neck.
While sleep apnea is often associated with aging adults that are overweight, do not be fooled. Sleep apnea can plague healthy, fit individuals. Therefore, sleep apnea screenings are essential if you snore or experience more noticeable signs of sleep apnea like daytime fatigue, mood swings, difficulty remembering important things, or feelings of depression.
Why see a dentist for my sleep apnea?
There are a couple of reasons you should see our Albertville airway dentists if you have been diagnosed with sleep apnea or experience symptoms associated with this sleep-breathing disorder.
Sleep studies can be costly and uncomfortable for patients. But when you see a sleep apnea dentist, we screen you for sleep apnea and determine if you could benefit from oral appliance therapy to help you breathe better at night. This doesn’t mean that you may never need to undergo a sleep study, but a sleep study doesn’t have to be your first step in the treatment process.
Oral appliance therapy has a higher compliance rate than CPAP machines. CPAPs, or continuous positive airway pressure machines, force air into the airway through a mask that you wear at night. It works, but users often complain about the machine’s noise, that it disrupts their partner’s sleep, and that the mask is uncomfortable to wear. Additionally, if you travel a lot, bringing your CPAP with you can be an added, cumbersome addition to your luggage. Therefore, oral appliance therapy is simple and comfortable to use because it is discreet, small, and is made from impressions of your teeth.
Sleep apnea dentists in Albertville, Alabama
Getting help with your sleep apnea doesn’t have to involve sleep studies and a CPAP machine. In many cases, oral appliance therapy is effective enough to relieve mild to moderate cases of sleep apnea. If you would like to learn more about this sleep-breathing disorder or find out if oral appliance therapy is right for you, contact Wall Street Dentistry by calling (256) 878-0525.
