A large tongue, tonsils or excess fat in the throat will narrow the airway space, a progressive narrowing of the airway space will make snoring louder. So, snoring can progressively get louder and worst.

Snoring is more prevalent in overweight people; the excess fat in the back of the throat vibrates while you sleep creating the loud sound.

If you snore, chances are that you also have Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), a more serious medical condition. OSA occurs when the tongue and soft palate collapse onto the back of the throat completely blocking the airway.

OSA is a very serious condition, in the OSA patients, the tissues in the back of the upper airway block the entire airway and there is a pause in the breathing and the oxygen levels in the blood drop due to the restriction in the flow of oxygen.

A patient can stop breathing hundreds of times a night and for a long time. The person feels like choking and gasps for air as they try to breath.

Another condition is known as Upper Airway Resistance Syndrome (UARS).

Dentist do not diagnose sleep apnea, Diagnosis should be made by an accredited sleep center.

How can we help?

1. We can work with your physician and sleep specialist as part of a medical team.

2. We are a team of dentists trained in dental sleep medicine and we can select, fabricate, fit and adjust an oral appliance that will open your airway, reposition the lower jaw and tongue forward therefore treating the snoring and OSA. This treatment is a therapy and requires follow up visits and ideally post adjustment sleep studies to determine the effectiveness of the treatment.

3. We can identify the risks factors and work with a Biofeedback technician that will help you lose weight, avoid alcohol, drugs and tobacco products.

Oral Appliances

These are small plastic devices that are worn in the mouth. They are similar to night guard, orthodontic retainers or sport mouth guards. These appliances keep the airway open preventing the collapse of the tongue and soft tissues in the back of the throat and therefore promoting adequate air intake.

Oral appliances can be used alone or in combination with other techniques for treating OSA including CPAP. Oral appliances are an excellent alternative to the CPAP in patients that can't tolerate them, they can also be a great complement to the CPAP.

Indications of Oral Appliance Therapy (AADSM)

- Patients with primary snoring or mild to moderate OSA who do not respond to, or are not appropriate candidates for treatment with behavioral measures such as weight loss or sleep- position change.

- Patients with moderate to severe OSA should have an initial trial of CPAP, due to greater effectiveness with the use of oral appliances.

- Patients with moderate to severe OSA who are intolerant of or refuse treatment with nasal CPAP. Oral appliances are also indicated for patients who refuse, or are not candidates for tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy, craniofacial operations or tracheotomy.

Dr Alvaro Ordonez was trained in a University- Hospital based interdisciplinary program in TMJ Disorders, Dental Occlusion and Facial pain at TUFTS University- New England medical Center in Boston, MA. and has been treating Snoring patients since 1993 with excellent results.

Give us a chance to help you and work with you!