Sleep Apnea

What is sleep apnea?

Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder. If you have sleep apnea, you start and stop breathing throughout the night. Not breathing impacts the quality of your sleep and affects oxygen supply, which can lead to other health conditions. The three main types of sleep apnea include:

• Obstructive sleep apnea — The most common form of sleep apnea that happens when the throat relaxes too much while sleeping. It blocks the airways to prevent normal breathing.
• Central sleep apnea — A rare form of sleep apnea that happens when your brain doesn’t send signals to your breathing muscles, telling them to breathe.
• Complex sleep apnea syndrome — When someone has both obstructive and central sleep apnea.

This condition is normally associated with loud, intense snoring, but just because people snore doesn’t mean they have sleep apnea. It can be caused by being overweight, excessive alcohol consumption or drug use can cause the airways to become more relaxed and cause blockages, and it can also be caused by genetics. People with a family history of sleep apnea are more likely to suffer from the condition.

How is sleep apnea diagnosed?

You may have sleep apnea if you have loud, intense snores, but not all snoring means you have sleep apnea. A polysomnogram, or sleep study, helps diagnose sleep apnea.

A sleep study records brain activity, breathing and oxygen levels while you sleep. It also measures the quality of your sleep. After the study, a specialist goes over the results with you to determine if you have a sleep disorder and the best treatment options.

Your dentist may be able to treat obstructive sleep apnea with oral appliance therapy.

What are common sleep apnea symptoms?

If you think you have sleep apnea, contact your doctor. Some sleep apnea symptoms include:

• Going to the bathroom a lot at night
• Insomnia or waking up a lot
• Lack of energy when awake
• Loud snoring
• Mood shifts
• Restless sleep
• Painful headaches
• Poor concentration
• Waking up with a dry or sore throat
• Waking up choking or gasping

How is sleep apnea treated?

Sleep apnea treatments may involve surgery, using a CPAP or BiPAP machine or wearing a sleep apnea mouth guard. Oral appliances can help treat mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea without being too invasive. They help hold the jaw in a certain position during sleep to increase oxygen flow.