A good night’s sleep is essential for good health. Lack of sleep can be caused by sleep-related breathing disorders (SRBD).
When soft tissues near the back of the throat collapse during sleep, they partially close off the windpipe and can cause reduced or interrupted respiratory airflow. These tissues can vibrate as air passes by which can cause snoring.
When the upper airway is blocked causing significant airflow disruption, chronic snoring can occur, which is a symptom of Obstructive Sleep Apnea . This can cause reduced airflow into the lungs lowers blood-oxygen levels.
A person with sleep apnea may wake 50 or more times per hour without having any memory of it. These are called micro-arousals and last just long enough to restore muscle tone to the airway so you can breathe. Unfortunately, all those micro-arousals prevent a restful sleep.
Obstructive Sleep Apnea is a serious matter as it can lead to heart problems and other health issues. It’s possible you may have OSA if you snore and also suffer from any of the following:
At our office, we can work with you and orders from your sleep physician to make an oral repositioning appliance if you’re sleep physician feels that it has a reasonable chance of success. Once you have adjusted to where we feel it would have the maximum effectiveness, we’ll refer you back to your physician for another evaluation to determine its success in managing your sleep apnea.
