Sleep Apnea And Tooth Decay: Using Dental Treatment Is An Alternative Solution To Using CPAP
Under normal circumstances a person will continue to breathe normally throughout the day and also during the night, though once a person has fallen asleep things get somewhat more complicated and in a small percentage of folks the structure of the nose and also the mouth may fall back against the throat's wall and thus cause a constriction of the airway resulting in snoring. And, when the constriction becomes as narrow as to completely obstruct the airways, a person will suffer from sleep apnea.
No Direct Evidence
Thus, though there is no direct evidence to support any claims that sleep apnea and tooth decay go hand in hand, there is no denying the fact that first person you would go to if you were suffering from sleep apnea would be your dentist who would be able to identify the problem though will generally not be the one to treat you for your sleep apnea. The right person whom you need to consult would be a pulmonologist or sleep specialist who may prescribe a medical treatment such Continuous Positive Airway Pressure method to treat your sleep apnea problem.
However, since you are more worried about both sleep apnea and tooth decay, it may be that you need dental treatment because they are simpler than choosing Continuous Positive Airway Pressure or CPAP since it will prove to be better as far as patient compliance goes. There are two main dentally oriented treatment methods that can be used in case you are suffering from sleep apnea and tooth decay.
The first such method for sleep apnea and tooth decay is using removable appliances that help in advancing your lower jaw while you are asleep and are also sometimes referred to as snore guards, while the second method used for sleep apnea and tooth decay would be surgical solutions in which a few of them will do the same correction as do the removable appliances, though on a more permanent basis.
However, before using the removable appliances to treat sleep apnea and tooth decay, it is necessary that you have enough healthy teeth in both your upper as well as lower arches so that the appliance can be attached to them. Still, if you are missing having sufficient numbers of healthy teeth, you can still use removable appliances for your sleep apnea and tooth decay problem by having dental implants installed where they are needed most.
The advantage of using removable appliances as well as trying out surgical solutions is that they help treat not only snoring, but also sleep apnea and tooth decay.
