When you sleep, a number of problems may be thwarting you from obtaining a full night’s rest. However, these problems could also be causing serious risks to your health. Snoring, gasping, breathing pauses, morning headaches, and day time fatigue could be indicators that you suffer from sleep apnea. Dr. Nugent offers current solutions for sleep apnea that can reduce snoring and decrease life-threatening health risks. Our Dental Sleep Practice can facilitate sleep studies in your own home, as opposed to a hospital setting or sleep center. The sleep test will reveal the status of your sleep health. If snoring or sleep apnea are discovered after the home test is read by a board-certified physician Dr. Nugent can begin an effective treatment. Many insurance companies offer coverage for at-home sleep studies, as well as oral appliances to treat sleep apnea once you have completed a sleep study and have been medically diagnosed.
WHAT IS SLEEP APNEA?
Sleep apnea is a disorder that arises when the muscles and soft tissues in the mouth, throat, and/or nasal passages relax during sleep. This relaxation can allow the tissue to occlude the airway or severely limit the amount of air that can travel through the airway. Snoring is frequently the most noticeable symptom of this; however, snoring and other symptoms – such as pauses while breathing of up to 10 seconds – may go completely unseen unless a bed partner tell you about them. There are modern treatment options available. Sleep apnea has many disastrous health risks. Therefore, it is imperative to treat sleep apnea as soon as possible
SLEEP APNEA HEALTH RISKS
Sleep apnea, snoring, and pauses in breathing can cause a range of severe risks to your health, including:
Sudden cardiac death High blood pressure
Dr. Michael Nugent can assess sleep apnea severity and help you obtain a safer, healthier night’s sleep.
SLEEP APNEA TREATMENT OPTIONS
New advances in sleep apnea treatment have allowed us to offer more comfortable and effective treatment options. Dr. Nugent first orders a home sleep test. This test is mailed to your house where you wear the testing device for two nights sleep. Then you simply mail the sleep test back in a pre-paid envelope. Next, a board-certified sleep physician interprets your sleep study and gives a diagnosis and treatment prescription. Once you have been medically diagnosed with sleep apnea and the physician indicated that an oral appliance will treat your sleep apnea we begin. With the diagnosis and sleep study, medical insurance will usually cover the oral appliance therapy. Oral dental appliances for sleep apnea resemble orthodontic retainers and are designed to keep your airways open and allow a more positive level of air to flow through. The sleep apnea oral appliance accomplishes this by moving the lower jaw forward and downward. This opens up the airway. This can ultimately reduce snoring and other symptoms associated with sleep apnea.
