The Good

• OTC Devices are inexpensive
• OTC Devices can be purchased at many drugstores

The Bad

Unsupervised wearing of these devices can lead to permanent side effects including: permanent dental damage, tooth movement, and jaw problems. Due to OTC construction, the potential for failure is high, discouraging FDA approved and physician recommended treatment with professionally fitted and custom-made Oral Appliances.

 The Ugly

Most importantly, many who try boil and bite devices may be masking obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a life threatening condition in which a person stops breathing repeatedly through the night.

If you are snoring, or believe you may be suffering from sleep apnea, Please discuss your situation with your physician.

Dr. Sosenko is a Diplomate of the American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine and the founder of Dental Sleep Medicine of Illinois.  She offers snoring and apnea sufferer’s relief through professional oral appliance device therapy. For more information visit her website: www.TiredofSnoring.com .

Without treatment, middle-aged men are much more likely to suffer fatal consequences from OSA (obstructive sleep apnea).  In OSA, a person’s airway collapses causing the individual to struggle to breathe while asleep. This study highlights that men with OSA have a 58% higher risk of developing heart failure.  Men with the most severe OSA had a 68% higher risk for developing heart disease than those who do not have OSA.

Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea is described as 30 or more breathing interruptions.  These interruptions cause oxygen depletion and can last at least 10 seconds.  Accompanying burst of adrenaline from sudden wakefulness increases blood pressure, which possibly contributes to vascular problems, according to researchers.

Researchers add that most people suffering from OSA do not get diagnosed until years and up to a decade after the onset of symptoms.  Therefore, those most at risk for associated cardiovascular death are those individuals ages 30 to 50.   “The take-away from our study is that obstructive sleep apnea is a serious condition that warrants medical treatment, said Daniel J. Gottlieb, M.D., M.P.H., lead study author and associate professor at Boston University’s School of Medicine. “Many patients don’t experience symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea, such as daytime sleepiness, or if they do, don’t mention it during routine medical exams. It’s important for anyone who suspects they have obstructive sleep apnea to discuss it with their primary care physician.”     (July, 2010) Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

At Dental Sleep Medicine of Illinois, we can help you understand your risk for Obstructive Sleep Apnea, and align a treatment that best meets your needs and lifestyle.  Prevent serious health consequences and consult with us today.

ACo-authors are: Gayane Yenokyan, M.D., Ph.D.; Anne B. Newman, M.D., M.P.H.; George T. O’Connor, M.D., M.Sc.; Naresh M. Punjabi, M.D., Ph.D.; Stuart F. Quan, M.D.; Susan Redline, M.D., M.P.H.; Helaine E. Resnick, Ph.D., M.P.H.; Elisa K. Tong, M.D., M.A.; Marie Diener-West, Ph.D.; and Eyal Shahar, M.D., M.P.H. Author disclosures are on the manuscript.

ScienceDaily (June 8, 2010) — The average academic grades of children and teens with moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea are worse than the grades of students who have no sleep-disordered breathing, according to a research abstract presented June 8, 2010, in San Antonio, Texas, at SLEEP 2010, the 24th annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies LLC.

Results indicate that moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea was linked to both lower academic grades and behavioral concerns expressed by parents and teachers. The results remained significant after adjustment for sex, race, socioeconomic status and sleep duration on school nights. Students with moderate to severe sleep apnea averaged a half-letter grade lower than those without any evidence of sleep-disordered breathing. None of the students with moderate to severe OSA had an “A” average, and 30 percent of them had a “C” average or lower. In contrast, roughly 15 percent of participants without sleep-disordered breathing had an “A” average, and only about 15 percent had a “C” average or lower.

“There was an impressive impact of sleep-disordered breathing on academic grades,” said principal investigator and lead author Dean W. Beebe, PhD, associate professor of pediatrics in the division of behavioral medicine and clinical psychology at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center in Ohio. “That leaves the subjects with moderate to severe sleep apnea at a serious disadvantage.”

Follow-up tests suggested that OSA was particularly associated with inattention and poor study skills in real-world situations, which could cause functional impairment at school. In contrast, there was no significant link between OSA and office-based tests that measured aspects of neurobehavioral functioning such as intelligence, memory and problem solving.

The study involved 163 overweight children and adolescents between the ages of 10 and 17 years. According to the authors, over­weight subjects were targeted because excessive weight is a primary risk factor for OSA in this age group. Participants’ sleep was evaluated by overnight polysomnography, and parents reported whether or not their child snores. Forty-two students had moderate to severe OSA, which was defined as having an apnea-hypopnea index of more than five partial and complete breathing pauses per hour of sleep. Fifty-eight participants had mild OSA with an AHI of one to five; 26 students were snorers with an AHI of less than one and a parent report of snoring; and 37 of the children and teens had no sleep-disordered breathing.

School grades were reported by students and their parents, and student behavior was reported by parents and teachers. Office-based neuropsychological testing was performed to assess neurobehavioral functioning.

Beebe added that the negative effect of OSA on the academic success of children and teens could have ramifications that extend beyond the classroom.

“Academic performance in middle and high school has implications for adult outcomes, including high school graduation, college admission and completion, and adult mental illness and substance abuse,” said Beebe. “Similarly, the poor attention and other deficits reported by both parents and teachers of subjects with obstructive sleep apnea raise concerns about the long-term prospects of teens with sleep-disordered breathing.”

The study was supported by the American Sleep Medicine Foundation; and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and National Center for Research Resources of the National Institutes of Health.

Story Source:The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials provided by American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

American Academy of Sleep Medicine (2010, June 8). Sleep apnea in children and teens to linked to lower academic grades. ScienceDaily.