If you struggle with daytime drowsiness and chronic snoring, then you could be suffering from obstructive sleep apnea, a widespread disorder that impacts millions in the United States. But good news, Dr. Koehne is a member of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine, and along with your Wheaton, IL, dental office team, can help you with a noninvasive sleep apnea solution!
The Factors Behind Sleep Apnea
What causes a sleep disorder like sleep apnea? With sleep apnea, as you rest the soft tissues in the back of your mouth and in your throat actually become too relaxed and collapse, which cuts off airflow briefly until the brain wakes you. Most people don’t remember these episodes, maybe occasionally register gasping or air or waking up choking. This could be brought on by age, weight, neck circumference, sleep positions, alcohol consumption, or even sinus or allergy concerns. A deviated septum or issues with the growth and development of your smile and oral structures could be a factor too. As part of your treatment, we will assess the underlying factors behind your sleep disorder.
Symptoms and Long-Term Troubles
As we mentioned above, you may wake multiple times the right choking or gasping for breath, or could experience chronic snoring, headaches, dry mouth, irritability, and issues with concentration during the day. You may have issues with short term memory too. Over time, this can leave you exhausted and impact your work life and personal life in negative ways. The stress on your immune system could leave you more vulnerable to illness, and the strain on your cardiovascular system could mean a greater risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, and heart attack. But we can offer relief before you reach these stages, so you breathe without interruption and feel more rested and alert.
Oral Appliance Therapy
With Oral Appliance Therapy (OAT), we will take detailed digital images of your smile from multiple angles, using the information to design and custom-fit an oral appliance, a device that looks and fits like a mouthguard, and is worn as you rest. The device then repositions the jaw and tongue to keep airways open while you rest, so you avoid the cessation of breathing and interruptions to your REM sleep. The next day, you feel more awake and alert. We can also discuss changes to your sleep routine to help facilitate a better night’s rest as well. If you have any questions about how we diagnose and treat issues like sleep apnea with OAT, then contact our team today.
Talk To Your Wheaton, IL Dentist About Sleep Medicine
We have the experience and expertise to help diagnose and treat issues like sleep apnea, so you can rest easy. If you would like to find out more about enjoying a good night’s rest again, call Amber Dental in Wheaton, IL today at (630) 665-5555.
