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What You Need to Know about Obstructive Sleep Apnea

What You Need to Know about Obstructive Sleep Apnea
Posted on 07/17/2017
What You Need to Know about Obstructive Sleep Apnea

What You Need to Know about Obstructive Sleep Apnea

With the most recent national case involving OSA (Obstructive Sleep Apnea) and the death of Carrie Fisher, more national attention needs to be focused on this life or death condition. Recent surveys show up to 70% of people snore. Snoring is recognized more as a nuisance but is a very indicative sign of a possible life threatening condition. OSA is when the airway, through relaxation of the airway tissues, is closed off. A more severe case called Central Sleep Apnea is when the brain, sometimes due to head trauma/concussions, does not send a signal for us to breathe normally. Current research is that 40% of all snoring/OSA cases go untreated. Leaving the person to sleep in another room does not fix the problem of snoring and the life threatening dangers of sleep apnea. In fact, if no one is there to hear someone gasping for air or stopping breathing, it goes further undiagnosed. If someone's airway is totally closed off then the brain is oxygen deprived forcing your body to gasp for oxygen and awaken.

Sleep studies, which are ordered through your medical insurance, are used to determine the level and extent your snoring and possible stopping breathing is occurring. They measure through and index, how many times per hour you stopped breathing and or what level your brain is being deprived of oxygen.

*We only connect you to the sleep study company, they provide the results which are then sent to your medical doctor and our office. We then decide upon what mode of treatment would best fit your needs and comfort, CPAP machine or an oral appliance.

Pros and Cons of CPAP

Pros:

  • Gold standard and best for severe and central sleep apnea
  • Easy coverage by insurance companies, although 40% don't comply and return the machine so insurance companies like not paying.

Cons:

  • Foreign object on your face nose or mouth.
  • Hoses connecting to machine on nightstand and interfering with sleep
  • Continuous replacement and cleaning of hoses, tubes, masks, etc.
  • Issue with portability if you travel
  • Dry mouth upon awakening due to constant air being forced into your mouth.

Pros and Cons of Oral Appliances

Pros:

  • Small, light and least intrusive.
  • Cheaper due to no maintenance of new tubes/masks/filters regularly
  • No connection to a machine and noise associated and no issues with sleeping and turning with a hose connected to your face to a machine on your nightstand
  • Easy to take with you or wear anywhere such as an overnight flight or on vacation abroad etc. as only weighs a few ounces and fits in a small orthodontic retainer plastic box.

At Federici Dental the following applies as well with our appliance:

  • Digitally made via a scan of your mouth, no impressions.
  • FDA approved and our appliance is made of surgical grade nylon with no metals involved

Cons:

  • Lower jaw is repositioned forward to open airway so upon awakening jaw muscles may be fatigued for first 15 mins
  • Can only treat mild to moderate and is not indicated for Central Sleep Apnea which is brain telling body not to breath.
  • Some insurances/Medicare make it complicated process for coverage.

But what price can we put on saving our lives or make it better by quality sleep, not being deprived of oxygen, not keeping our partners awake, keeping our blood pressure and heart stress down, being more refreshed and focused at work or at home, and many other reasons?

We are seeing more insurance companies want to cover oral appliances, especially the FDA approved ones like we provide, because they can save on paying out on new masks, tubing, filters, etc. But most importantly, we all want patients to treat the situation and with the 40% non-compliance of CPAP, those patients’ lives are being put at risk! We have the solution to make your lives better and safer at Federici Dental.

If you or your spouse have been told or heard gasping and snoring at night, please contact us at (609) 597-1234 or complete our appointment request form to get started.