Dental Sleep Medicine or Sleep Disorders Dentistry is essentially a branch of dentistry that provides oral appliance treatment solutions for sleep disorders, specifically snoring and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

SNORING – Snoring is an often annoying sound that occurs during sleep when soft tissue in the upper airway (behind the nose and in the throat) vibrates as you breathe. Snoring is very common in men but women also snore especially during pregnancy and after menopause. The risk of snoring tends to increase with obesity, nasal obstruction, mouth breathing, alcohol and when sleeping in the supine position (on your back). Snoring can be a social problem and particularly disturbing to a bed partner or roommate. Research has linked loud snoring with high blood pressure, heart attack and stroke. Loud and continuous snoring interrupted by breathing pauses, gasping or choking is a common sign of the more serious disorder, obstructive sleep apnea.

Treatment for Snoring & Sleep Apnea

OBSTRUCTIVE SLEEP APNEA (OSA) – About 25 million adults in the U.S. have OSA. Sadly, most people that have OSA don’t know that they do and are suffering from a lower quality of life unnecessarily. Awareness and screening will go a long way to help improve the quality and duration of life for this unfortunate majority with treatment.

OSA is a chronic condition that occurs when upper airway muscles relax during sleep causing soft tissues to collapse and block the airway preventing adequate airflow to the lungs. These breathing pauses can occur repeatedly and cause drops in blood oxygen which in turn increases the risk of serious health problems. These include high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease, diabetes, acid reflux and erectile dysfunction. Untreated OSA can increase the risk of early death. Breathing pauses of OSA are followed by brief awakenings and fragmented sleep. This often results in excessive daytime sleepiness,
fatigue, morning headache and memory loss and often increased risk of motor vehicle and workplace accidents. As with snoring, OSA is more common in men but can occur in women especially during and after menopause. Risk of OSA increases with excess body weight, a narrow airway or an underdeveloped lower jaw.

ORAL APPLIANCE THERAPY (OAT) - Oral appliance therapy can be an effective treatment option for snoring and OSA. Oral appliances are custom fit like a sports mouth guard or orthodontic retainer and supports the lower jaw in a slightly forward position to help maintain an open upper airway during sleep. There are currently over 100 oral appliance variations available and a Qualified Sleep Dentist will recommend the appliance that is best suited for the individual patient. Oral appliance therapy (OAT) can be an effective, comfortable, non-invasive and portable treatment option for the management of snoring and sleep apnea. An oral appliance can improve your sleep, restore your alertness and memory and revitalize your health.

THE PROCESS – Dentists qualified to help treat snoring and OSA (Sleep Dentists) work closely with sleep specialist physicians (Sleep Physicians) to treat snoring and sleep apnea. The Sleep Physicians diagnoses and treats many sleep disorders but must determine if a patient’s snoring is a sign of more serious obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

The Sleep Physician provides the patient with a complete sleep evaluation usually involving an overnight sleep evaluation at a sleep centre. We have the pleasure of working with a number of Sleep Physicians in Durham Region. The Sleep Physician interprets the sleep study data, makes a diagnosis and then recommends treatment options if treatment is deemed necessary. If snoring and sleep apnea is diagnosed, treatment options may include lifestyle changes, positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy, oral appliance therapy (OAT) or surgery. The Sleep Physician and patient discuss the diagnosis and severity of the sleep disorder and if treatment is necessary, treatment options will be recommended. If the patient and Sleep Physician decide that the oral appliance is the best treatment option, the Sleep Physician will provide a written prescription for an oral appliance to be custom made, optimally adjusted and monitored by the Qualified Sleep Dentist. The Sleep Physician and Sleep Dentist communicate during the course of the oral appliance treatment (OAT) and once it is determined that the snoring and OSA are well managed by the oral appliance, the Sleep Physician sees the patient again for another overnight sleep study, with the oral appliance, to test its efficacy. Follow up visits with the Sleep Dentist will be needed to ensure optimal fit, comfort and effectiveness of the oral appliance. Follow up and annual assessments are
necessary for long term treatment success.

Sleep impacts every aspect of your health and daily life and sleeping well helps you look, feel and perform at your best. We will do our best to screen patients for sleep disorders and increase awareness of the signs and symptoms of sleep disordered breathing so patients in need receive the treatment that is available to them to live longer and healthier lives.