Treatment

Real Treatments for Obstructive Sleep Apnea

There are many choices when it comes to treating Obstructive Sleep Apnea. In this section we want to share with you some of the various oral appliances that are used in dental oral appliance therapy.
Dental sleep medicine involves the selection, design, fitting, and adjustments of a specifically designed oral appliance. This oral appliance is then worn during sleep in order to maintain an opened and unobstructed airway in the throat.
The oral appliances are comfortable to wear while sleeping, and due to their small size they are both portable, and easy to care for.

Advantages of Dental Oral Appliances

• Treatment is non-invasive
• Comfortable
• Easy to travel with
• Silent and easy to clean
• Cost effective
• Easy to get use to and an alternative to those who are CPAP intolerant

Full Breath Solution

The design of the Full Breath Solution focuses on inhibition of tongue movement; inhibiting the rise and backward movement of the tongue so that it does not block the airway during sleep. With a single arch appliance designed to provide subtle yet effective adjustments, the Full Breath Solution improves airflow 100% of the time and stops snoring with 95% of all patients.

OSASYS

The OSASYS Oral/Nasal Airway System T is the first dental device to be reviewed by both the dental and ENT divisions of the FDA and to be approved as a dental device for treatment of snoring and sleep apnea. The unique feature of this device is the addition of two acrylic “bulbs” attached to the wire support in the front of the mouth. These two bulbs are reported to improve breathing through the nose by acting as nasal dilator.

SUAD

The SUAD is made from several sheets of acrylic that has been heated and bonded to a metal framework. The SUAD is adjusted by placing “spacers” on the “piston-like” mechanism located on each side. The rubber-band-looking-rings hold the upper and lower together and keep the mouth from dropping open at night. It is the strongest sleep retainer made and the one most used for people who have a history of “grinding” their teeth at night. Despite its rugged appearance, it’s comfortable to wear and easy to adjust.

SomnoDent MAS

The SomnoDent MAS® reduces your snoring by moving the lower jaw forward and keeping it from dropping back and shutting off your airway. It’s made of dental acrylic so it can be easily changed should you have dental work such as a crown or bridge replaced. Its highly polished surface makes it comfortable to wear and gentle on the soft tissues of our cheek and tongue. All of the adjustment mechanisms are made of medical-grade stainless steel insuring they do not rust and remain workable for many years. As a sleep medicine dentist we make changes to the SomnoDent® by turning an adjustment screw housed in a protective shell on each side of the retainer. It is small and lightweight and one of our most popular models.

The Herbst

The Herbst Sleep Appliance was one of the earliest designs that was used to control snoring and sleep apnea. The appliance gets its name from the telescoping bars on each side of the device. These bars have been used in orthodontics for years to “move the lower jaw forward”—which is exactly what needs to happen in order to open the airway in your throat. Not as strongly built as the SUAD this appliance works just like it by allowing a lot of movement of the lower jaw during sleep. The small rubber bands attaches the upper to the lower to prevent snoring by the accidental opening of the mouth while sleeping.

Elastomeric Sleep Appliance

The Elastomeric Sleep appliance to be effective in the treatment of snoring and mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea. The material used in this appliance is normally used for tooth movement procedures because of its elasticity. In the sleep appliance it is passive and exerts small tooth-moving forces. The Elastomeric Sleep appliance is made of soft silicone in a custom-injection process to yield the optimum in retention and patient comfort.

As you can see there are many choices and procedures available for the trained sleep medicine dentist to use in helping you treat your sleep apnea. Here we have shown you only a few of the many choices that can be used. Remember that these appliances like any medical device require specialized training to be effective and must be prescribed by a dental sleep physician or dentist.

Both the American Sleep Disorders Association and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommend dental oral appliances for mild to moderate sleep apnea for patients who do not respond well, or can not tolerate their CPAP machine.

When you come to our office you can be assured that we have both the training and the experience to help you properly treat your obstructive sleep apnea.

Call Our office today for a
No Obligation Consultation
866-535-0887