When you imagine diagnosing and treating sleep apnea, you may assume you’re looking forward to trying to rest in a lab setting and wearing a CPAP machine. You may be trying to use a CPAP now, and may find it doesn’t work for you. But our team offers a more convenient and comfortable alternatives. At
our Tampa, FL, sleep center, we can provide an
at-home diagnosis and an oral appliance!
Warning Signs to Seek Treatment
When should you contact our team to undergo a diagnosis? With a disorder like sleep apnea, as you rest the air passages are blocked by the collapse of soft tissues in the throat and the rear of the mouth. This causes you to stop breathing until the brain can register the drop in oxygen and wake you. While this takes seconds, it can interrupt your sleep cycle, so you’re more exhausted the next day. These episodes can also lead to dry mouth, headaches, waking up choking or gasping for air, moodiness, depression, and difficulty concentrating on tasks at work or school. When you experience symptoms like these, please let us know right away!
The Home-Based Diagnosis
For an accurate diagnosis,
we will send you home with a small device that sits at your bedside. This is connected to your body as you rest, and takes notes of episodes of breathing cessation and changes in blood pressure. When you return the device to our team, a board-certified sleep physician can take a look at them and interpret them, creating a diagnosis with precision. The records will let us know if you suffer from sleep apnea, and also allow us to choose the best treatment for you. Remember, treating the disorder not only means you’re more alert the next day, but also prevents stress on your immune system and cardiovascular system, protecting you from serious health concerns down the road.
Treatment with Oral Appliances
Once we identify the presence of sleep apnea, how do we treat it? Instead of a traditional CPAP machine, we can offer a more comfortable and effective option with an oral appliance. No loud machines or ask to be won as you sleep. Instead, we will design and custom-fit an oral appliance, which fits like a mouthguard and is worn as you sleep. The
oral appliance will shift your jaw to keep airways open, so you can breathe without interruption and feel more rested and alert the next day. If you have any questions about how we diagnose and treat concerns like these, then contact our team today to learn more.
Talk To Your Tampa, FL Dentist About Oral Appliance Therapy
We would like to help you regain the ability to enjoy a good night’s rest! For more information on how we diagnose and treat sleep disorders,
call our Tampa, FL treatment office today at (813) 640-4086.
