Sleep Apnea

Shah & Velilla DDS Our Services Sleep Apnea

Shah & Velilla DDS

Cosmetic & Family Dentist located in Novi, MI

If you’re suffering from a sleep disorder, your dentist is frequently the first person to catch it. Though that may not seem obvious, it actually makes a lot of sense, since many sleep disorders leave telltale signs in your oral tissues. At Shah & Velilla DDS in Novi, Michigan, Sanjiv Shah, DDS, and Morris Velilla, DDS, provide diagnoses and treatments for conditions like sleep apnea, helping their patients to get a good night’s rest and maintain their overall health. Schedule your sleep apnea consultation today by calling the office or booking a visit online.

Sleep Apnea Q & A

What is sleep apnea?

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a serious disorder in which your airway becomes involuntarily obstructed while you sleep, causing you to stop breathing for extended periods of time. These periods of breathlessness can last anywhere between 10 seconds and several minutes and can occur hundreds of times a night.

What are the symptoms of sleep apnea?

If you’re suffering from sleep apnea, you might notice that you:

  • Frequently wake up with a dry or sore throat
  • Snore loudly
  • Occasionally wake up choking or gasping for air
  • Feel sleepy, drained of energy, or grumpy throughout the day
  • Have headaches in the morning
  • Have restless sleep
  • Suffer from forgetfulness, mood changes, or a lack of interest in sex
  • Suffer from insomnia or are consistently woken up throughout the night

Some of the indicators that the team at Shah & Velilla DDS look for when diagnosing your sleep apnea are:

  • Worn tooth surfaces that indicate bruxism, or tooth grinding
  • Scalloped edges on your tongue that indicate a tongue that doesn’t entirely fit in your jaw
  • Redness in your throat that indicates snoring

Do I need to treat my sleep apnea?

Sleep apnea is incredibly harmful to your health and should always be treated. Apneic episodes interrupt the proper flow of oxygen into your system, which lowers the overall level of oxygen in your blood. If untreated, sleep apnea can lead to:

  • Hypertension
  • Heart disease
  • Stroke
  • Diabetes
  • Worsening of ADHD
  • Depression

If you think that you’re suffering from sleep apnea, don’t hesitate to pursue treatment by scheduling an appointment with the team at Shah & Velilla DDS.

How do you treat sleep apnea?

The Shah & Velilla DDS team treats sleep apnea with a mandibular advancement device (MAD). A MAD is a special type of mouthguard that pushes your lower jaw forward while you sleep. Repositioning your lower jaw helps to make room in the back of your throat and increase your airflow during sleep. 

A MAD is a popular alternative to a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine, a sleep apnea treatment that pumps oxygen in through your nose and mouth while you sleep via a face mask. Many patients report that MADs are less invasive and are a bit more comfortable to sleep in. 

Don’t go another night with poor sleep. Schedule an appointment with Shah & Velilla DDS today, and get that good night’s rest you deserve. You can book your visit by calling the office or using the convenient online tool.

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