We all know what snoring is and how it affects those around us. Half of snorers may suffer some level of sleep apnea or sleep “without breath”. A simple test can be conducted at home in your own bed that can screen your sleep pattern and help determine if a monitored sleep study test should be ordered.
Sleep apnea is characterized by pauses in breathing from a few seconds to a minute. These pauses can occur a few times during the night or over a hundred times an hour. It can result in low blood oxygen saturation levels causing oxygen starvation of the body organs. The pulse rate will rise as the heart tries to pump more oxygenated blood to the body. This stress can result in strokes, hypertension, heart disease, weight gain, depression, diabetes, impotence, GERD, liver disease, memory dysfunction and death.
Your dentist can help detect screen sleep apnea patients by checking for worn or flattened teeth, scalloped tongue, enlarged tongue and uvula, extra boney growths and excessive gum recession. Your dentist can order a diagnostic at-home test (this can be free of charge) and have a sleep center read and interpret the results with you to help determine your risk for sleep apnea.
Sleep study tests can determine the incidence of breathing cessation. A medical doctor can confirm a diagnosis of sleep apnea after carefully reviewing the results of a sleep study test. These tests monitor such things like the blood oxygen level, REM cycles, and the frequency of obstructive episodes per hour.
You can ask yourself these questions to see if you should seek help. What are my chances of dozing when I sit and read, watch TV, sit in public places, wait for red lights while driving or sit as a passenger in a car? What is the likelihood of falling to sleep after lunch? If you are tired or fatigued easily during the day it would be very prudent to consult with your physician for advice.
Treatments for OSA can vary from anti-snoring devices made by dentists, sleeping on specially tilted pillows, neck slings, or wearing nasal cushions attached to positive pressure air pumps (CPAP). As with all treatment options these CPAP pumps cannot be tolerated by everyone and may have a limited success with some individuals.
I recently tested the at-home device for diagnostic screening of sleep apnea. It was discovered that during my sleep cycles my blood oxygen levels were dropping below acceptable levels and my heart rate climbed to the high eighties. No wonder I would occasionally wake up sweating! A sleep study test is currently being ordered and I will keep you updated.
If you know you’re snoring or your loved one is keeping you awake at night please talk to your physician or dentist to help determine the seriousness of the problem.
For answers to your dental questions, contact
Douglas Urban, D.D.S.
Cerritos, CA 90703
562 924-1523
DrDouglasUrban.com
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