If you wake up feeling tired, struggle with loud snoring, or gasp for air during sleep, you could have sleep apnea. At Dental Specialists of New Jersey in Verona and Westfield, NJ, highly trained dentists Shalom Mintz and Dale Rosenbach offer treatments for sleep apnea to help you get a better night's rest. Call the office to schedule an appointment or make one online today.
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Sleep apnea is a type of sleep disorder that affects your breathing during sleep. It can cause side effects that negatively affect your quality of life. Treatment with Dental Specialists of New Jersey offers you a better night’s sleep and improvements in breathing.
Common sleep apnea symptoms include:
● Gasping for air.● Breathing that starts and stops.● Loud snoring.● Dry mouth.● Morning headaches.● Problems staying asleep.● Irritability.● Mood swings.● Difficulty focusing at work or school.● Excessive daytime sleepiness.
Complications linked with sleep apnea include heart problems, high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, liver problems, and other chronic conditions. Loud snoring can negatively affect your partner’s sleep, as well as your own.
Sleep apnea is common and can happen to anyone, but some factors increase your risk of having it. Examples include:
● Family history of sleep apnea.● Having a thick neck.● Narrowed airways.● Excess body weight.● Being male.● Older age.● Smoking.● Alcohol use.● Sedative use.● Nasal congestion.● Medical conditions.
Medical problems that could increase your risk of obstructive sleep apnea include high blood pressure, heart failure, Type 2 diabetes, and Parkinson's disease.
Other risk factors include hormone disorders, past stroke, asthma, other chronic lung conditions, and polycystic ovary syndrome in women.
We will ask about your medical history, sleep habits, and symptoms to find out if you have sleep apnea and develop a treatment plan. We will examine your breathing and jaw and determine if you have a sleep apnea diagnosis from your medical provider. You might also undergo a sleep study.
Common treatments that help reduce symptoms of sleep apnea include:
Lifestyle changes
Things you can do at home to improve sleep quality include getting regular exercise, losing excess weight, and avoiding alcohol, smoking, certain medications, and sleeping pills.
Oral appliances
You can wear a custom-fitted oral appliance in your mouth at night when you sleep to reposition your jaw and improve airflow.
Surgery
In some cases, your dentist could recommend a surgical procedure to remove or repair tissues responsible for breathing obstruction.
To get treated for sleep apnea and get a better night’s rest, call our office or make an appointment online today.