For the past fifteen years,  we have been working with patients who suffer from snoring and sleep apnea. We find it a privilege to improve their quality of lives and sleep with oral devices that help them reach peaceful sleep. These oral devices are small, convenient and fit in the palm of your hand, far easier to deal with than previous failed attempts of CPAP therapy (often prescribed for snoring and apnea patients). Simply, these devices save lives.

One of the obstacles of moving forward with oral appliance therapy that we often hear from our newer patients includes cost and payments. So here are a few facts we put together.

• In most cases,  medical insurance reimburses a large portion of the service and device if the claim is properly handled.

• If insurance should not cover your situation, let’s do the math. If you consider the wide range of oral devices for snoring and apnea, let’s choose as a sample to use a longer lasting high quality custom device. A new custom type quality mouth device for snoring and apnea can last 3 years and usually much longer. (One of my patients who came in yesterday brought in his 10 year old oral appliance, and it is still in great shape!)  If you wore your oral device every night for 3 years, it would only cost you $2.47 a night.  If you compare that to a tall cup of Starbuck’s coffee which averages $3.00, that is 53 cents more a day to drink coffee than to wear a much needed, life saving device.

• Ask us if there is a temporary option using a lower quality and not as highly custom type device for you. For some patients,  this device can give some relief but we still recommend working with a dentist trained and willing to help you with this.  Side effects for these devices are often worse than  FDA approved adjustable custom devices.

Let us look at some of the possible outcomes with the lack of treatment in relation to obstructive sleep apnea and snoring. There are thousands of dollars of cost that often accompany these conditions.

• High Blood Pressure
• Stroke
• Heart Attack
• Morning Headaches that last all day.
• Sexual Dysfunction
• Mood Changes
• Relationship strains
• Higher traveling expenses (separate rooms)

Consider this: An oral appliance last years and profoundly change the quality of your life, especially if you have already attempted CPAP therapy. Make sleep a number one priority in your life! Peaceful, restful nights can add years to your life.

On a recent trip to Mexico, our beautiful resort was situated such that our room faced a tropical forest. It was lush and tranquil to look at but come morning look out!!

Our first morning resulted in loud birds squawking out our windows at 4:30am. This is not good when the entire family is now awake and not very happy…remember this is our vacation, and we would like to sleep in a little. Knowing that this is not just a fluke, I knew I have to find a remedy.

Preparing for what was to come the next morning. I started researching white noise apps on my iPhone that may help this situation. When you are out of the country, it is not always convenient to find a drug store to buy ear plugs.

I came across the app called White Noise Ambience. This app is great! You can choose beach sounds, rain, and lots more. For me? Well I chose the basic fan white noise setting. It did not completely eliminate the sounds, but it did help tremendously.

Whether you are worried about street noise, hotel elevators, and young children and adults running down hotel halls and talking loudly outside your door, you may want to try this app for white noise. Remember to plug your phone into your charger so that you won’t run the battery down.

Please share with us if you know of other similar apps that have helped you sleep better.

Dental Sleep and TMD Center of Illinois, a premiere snoring and apnea treatment center in Naperville has been providing the CPAP alternative treatment of oral appliance therapy for over 15 years successfully. For more information on this physician recommended treatment option, visit www.TiredOfSnoring.com or call us at (630) 369-5508.

Help us raise awareness about a sleep condition that affects more than 20 million adults each year.  The sad truth is that most people are not aware that chronic snoring is associated with the obstructive sleep apnea, a life-altering condition. Isn’t it time to educate ourselves?

If you or someone you know is frequently snoring or has the following symptoms you should consider getting a medical evaluation.  If a sleep disorder like obstructive sleep apnea is suspected, a sleep test may be requested. Here are some common reasons why a sleep test might be ordered:

• Snoring
• Gasping for breath, after a pause in breathing
• Waking with a dry mouth
• Excessive daytime sleepiness
• Drowsy driving
• Morning headaches
• Depression
• Overweight
• Gastric reflux
• Restless sleep
• Periodic leg jerks/movements
• Frequent trips to the bathroom at night
• Excessive night sweating
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• Insomnia
• Sleep walking, talking or eating

A sleep study is the best way to analyze and diagnose your sleep. There are many types of sleep disorders in addition to sleep apnea. Sleep studies can also determine whether you have a problem with your stages of sleep also. Depending on what the testing shows, there are several treatment options.

Do not let the affects of sleeping disorders such as sleep apnea change your life!

Dental Sleep and TMD Center of Illinois, a premiere snoring and apnea treatment center in Naperville has been providing the CPAP alternative treatment of oral appliance therapy for over 15 years successfully. We are extremely passionate in helping individuals that have been struggling with CPAP therapy in Naperville, Wheaton, Aurora, Bolingbrook and surrounding Chicago suburbs. For more information on this physician recommended treatment option, visit www.TiredOfSnoring.com or call us at (630)369-5508.

Hi this is Mary Ellen and I am going to review the tip of the week for dental sleep medicine.

This is a morning aligner, or a repositioner, or a retainer. It can be called different names by different providers of oral appliance therapy. Using these devices is one of the most important things I can talk to you about today that involves oral appliance therapy. For those patients who are wearing an oral appliance for snoring and apnea, use a custom  morning repositioner like this in the morning after you take out your appliance to help prevent potential side effects of your bite from changing.  Try to slowly adjust your bite into this device.  After it is inserted, keep it on your teeth anywhere from 5 minutes to 25 minutes or longer depending on what your teeth need. Take it out after five minutes and “test” your bite. If your bite does not feel ‘regular’ or where it needs to be, for normal chewing put it back into your mouth and adjust your bite to fit the pattern of the device again. Hold it there with moderate pressure until your teeth go back to their normal position that you are used to chewing.  After it is removed just briefly brush the morning aligner and place along with your oral appliance into the container box leaving the lid open and you are good to go. Our tip of the day, use a morning aligner to help prevent side effects from the use of oral appliance therapy for snoring and apnea.

Dental Sleep and TMD Center of Illinois, a premiere snoring and apnea treatment center in Naperville has been providing the CPAP alternative treatment of oral appliance therapy for over 15 years successfully. For more information on this physician recommended treatment option, visit www.TiredOfSnoring.com or call us at (630)369-5508.

We recently had a patient explain to us that when she was diagnosed with sleep apnea the only treatment option she as given was CPAP therapy.  She was desperate to know what other treatment options are available as a CPAP alternative.

Unfortunately, most patients I have seen over the last 15 years of working with obstructive sleep apnea sufferers have mentioned that CPAP therapy was their only option.   Yes, there are options!  However, which option that is best for you does depend on several things.  The severity of the apnea, sleepiness and fatigue levels during the day, and other complicated health conditions will play a part on the decision the doctor will make in managing your apnea treatment.  But the most common treatments options include the following.

Behavior Management

• Weight loss is highly recommended if needed.
• Avoid alcohol, sedatives, and tobacco
• Stress management
• Change your body position during sleep

Nasal Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Device

• Most common and effective treatment for sleep apnea and is the “Gold Standard” of care for obstructive sleep apnea.
• To keep the airway open positive air pressure is provided through the mask to keep the airway open during sleep

Oral Appliance Therapy

• Often very effective for mild to moderate apnea patients or for those people that are unable to tolerate CPAP therapy.
• These apnea mouth devices change the position of the mouth structure to maintain an open airway in the throat.
• It is important to work with a specially trained dentist with knowledge of jaw joints and sleep disorders.  Diplomates of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine have completed a rigorous testing process.
• There are many types of oral appliances, and the selection as to which is to be constructed is based on many patient parameters.

Surgery

• May be mentioned depending on the case severity and patient’s airway and throat anatomy.
• Except where abnormalities are present (nasal polyps, enlarged tonsils, deviated septum, or jaw malformations) surgery is only 50% effective, and many cases, which are in initially successful fail within five years.

Dental Sleep and TMD Center of Illinois, a premiere snoring and apnea treatment center in Naperville has been providing the CPAP alternative treatment of oral appliance therapy for over 15 years successfully. We are extremely passionate in helping individuals that have been struggling with CPAP therapy in Naperville, Wheaton, Aurora, Bolingbrook and surrounding Chicago suburbs. For more information on this physician recommended treatment option, visit www.TiredOfSnoring.com or call us at (630)369-5508.

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