Sleep Awareness Week – March 2-9, 2014

Sleep Awareness Week is an annual event that helps raise the public’s knowledge on the importance of sleep. Many people are aware of how important nutrition and exercise are to overall health and well being, but many miss the important marks on sleep health.

Here are a few myths and facts from the National Sleep Foundation to help us get realigned with SLEEP:

Myth 1: Snoring is common, especially with men, and not harmful.
Fact: Snoring is not uncommon amongst women. Snoring can also be a sign of a life threatening condition called obstructive sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea is defined as a person’s airway is partially or fully closed during sleep causing oxygen depreciation.

Myth 2: You can “catch up” on not sleeping enough.
Fact: For most, 7 to 9 hours of sleep works best for peak daytime performance. If you are not reaching your best-needed level, it’s not easy to “catch up” on sleep debt. Sleep deprivation is linked to obesity and other heart issues.

Myth 3: Insomnia is characterized as difficulty falling asleep.
Fact: There are MANY different types of insomnia. With some people, they may fall asleep easily, but wake up very early or in the middle of the night and not be able to return to sleep.

These are just three myths and facts about sleep. We’ll cover more myths and facts in our upcoming blogs.

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, Lisle, 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.

Stroke brainstem damage has been linked with obstructive sleep apnea. Sound serious? It is!

Many people do no realize the significance of having snoring evaluated medically. Although not all snorers have apnea, most apnea patients do snore.

Sleep apnea is marked by interrupted breathing during sleep and can lead to serious problems including heart disease and stroke.

A recent study discusses the link between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and stroke brainstem damage.

“People whose brainstems are affected by their stroke have a significantly higher prevalence of sleep apnea than those who have stroke-related injury elsewhere in the brain, according to research presented at the American Stroke Association’s International Stroke Conference 2014.”

If you suspect that you snore often, discuss the need for further evaluation with your primary care physician.

For more details on the study see http://newsroom.heart.org/news/sleep-apnea-common-among-stroke-related-brainstem-injuries.

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, Lisle, 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.

Dr. Michael Breus shares new guidelines on Obstructive Sleep Apnea

A recent article by Dr. Michael Breus has summarized the 3 major points to the newest guidelines set forth by the American College of Physicians for physicians treating individuals with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

The newest recommendations:

• Weight loss – Since weight loss can have a positive impact on obstructive sleep apnea, they are encouraging physicians to help their overweight OSA patients focus on weight loss.

• The ACP is also recommending CPAP as the first option for initial treatment of sleep apnea patients. However, the organization is also aware of the fact that many individuals do not use their prescribed CPAP.

• The ACP is also recommending that mandibular advancement devices (Oral Appliance Therapy / OAT) be considered for initial treatment of sleep apnea in patients who have adverse reactions to CPAP.

Drug therapy and surgery were not recommended within these guidelines for treating OSA.

Read more on this here:  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-michael-j-breus/sleep-apnea_b_4241113.html

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 successfully for over 15 years. We are extremely passionate in helping individuals that have been struggling with CPAP therapy in Naperville, Lisle, Aurora, Bolingbrook and surrounding Chicago suburbs. For more information on this physician recommended treatment option call us at (630)369-5508.

The lack of screening policies in regards to Obstructive Sleep Apnea and pilots has been a concern of mine for many years. In my practice over the years, I have met several pilots who were at high risk for Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). Many of these pilots refused to move forward through proper diagnostic procedures for fear of losing their jobs if OSA was confirmed. In the mean time, if Obstructive Sleep Apnea is present in pilots and not treated, the negative effects can lead to catastrophic aircraft incidents. The negative effects of a lack of alertness, excessive daytime sleepiness, and an overall ‘foggy feeling’ are common in individuals who have OSA and live life without proper treatment of this sleep disorder. Here’s an excerpt from an AOPA (Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association) article:

Are you a pilot with Obstructive Sleep Apnea?

“The aviation community has been up in arms since Federal Air Surgeon Fred Tilton announced that the FAA would be releasing a new policy that would require aviation medical examiners to calculate a pilot’s body mass index (BMI), and require those with a BMI of 40 or greater to get tested for Obstructive Sleep Apnea by a physician who is a board-certified sleep specialist and treated, if diagnosed, before being issued a medical certificate. Tilton stated that obstructive sleep apnea is almost universal in individuals with a BMI of 40 or greater and neck size of at least 17 inches. However, he said the agency would continue ratcheting down the BMI number “until we have identified and assured treatment for every airman with OSA.” He said the policy would later extend to air traffic controllers as well.” For more see: http://www.aopa.org/News-and-Video/All-News/2013/November/27/Sleep-apnea-scrutiny-falls-on-aviation.aspx?CMP=ADV:1 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 successfully for over 15 years. We are extremely passionate in helping individuals that have been struggling with CPAP therapy in Naperville, Lisle, Aurora, Bolingbrook and surrounding Chicago suburbs. For more information on this physician-recommended treatment, call us at (630) 369-5508.

If I wear a night guard during sleep for grinding, can I consider the use of an oral device for snoring – apnea?

Many dentists and physicians often misunderstand the answer to this question.

Oral appliance therapy (OAT) treats snoring and apnea with the use of jaw retainers. This type of therapy is recommended for a variety of apnea patients, and for most snoring individuals. But many patients (and professionals) are not aware that OAT may well be an excellent choice in treating apnea in patients that grind their teeth during sleep. Wearing a CPAP, the most commonly prescribed treatment for apnea, is often very difficult for patients to tolerate, and even harder if additionally one needs to wear a night guard for teeth grinding.

It’s important to realize that there are over 80 oral devices for OSA and that not all are appropriate to use with patients who grind their teeth. If the wrong device is chosen, jaw pain can begin or increase. Many other devices are not strong enough to withhold the forces of teeth grinding. Choice selection of which oral device remains important.

Also, many medical and dental providers do not realize that if you wear a night guard and not treat your apnea, you have approximately a 40-50% chance of making the apnea worse, which can cause serious harm to your health. Best options for apnea patients that grind their teeth include:

1. CPAP therapy together with the use of a night guard for grinding

OR

2. Use of one specialty oral apnea appliance that can protect teeth from harmful teeth grinding wear AND treats the 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. We are extremely passionate in helping individuals that have been struggling with CPAP therapy.