Are you or is your partner snoring at night? Do you or does your partner wake up frequently in the night, oftentimes out of breath? Feeling tired or exhausted after spending a full eight hours in bed? These are just a few symptoms of sleep breathing issues. What many don’t realize is that these issues are more than just getting bad sleep.

How your dental orthopedist can help

Oral Appliance Therapy (OAT) is a treatment for obstructive sleep apnea and other sleep breathing issues. This therapy involves a specially fitted and designed device to be worn in the mouth like you would a mouthguard. Over the counter dental sleep treatments are marketed as replacing properly fitted and adjusted CPAP, which is inaccurate and dangerous to claim.

Depending on your specific needs, the oral appliance can be used to reposition your lower jaw, hold your tongue in place, or both in order to keep the airway open. There are several types of oral appliance:

• Jaw (mandibular) devices: There are several types of these devices including Mandibular Advancement Devices (MAD), Mandibular Advancement Splints (MAS), and Mandibular Repositioning Appliances (MRA). These devices stop the soft tissues of the mouth from collapsing and closing off the airway by manipulating the jaw.
• Tongue devices: Known as Tongue Retaining Devices (TRD), these oral appliances prevent the tongue from blocking the airway.
• Jaw and tongue devices: These appliances, known as hybrid appliances manipulate the jaw and hold the tongue to prevent airway blockage.

Dr. Buck is a facial orthopedist based in the state of Washington. He is part of a collaborative team consisting of sleep specialists, ENT physicians and pulmonologists who all combine their expertise to help sleep apnea patients. Every patient is different, but it’s possible that OAT provided by specialists like Dr. Buck can help reduce severity and alleviate symptoms of your sleep breathing issues.

Want to learn more about treating your sleep breathing issues?

For more information on Dr. Buck’s practice and the treatment options he provides, schedule an appointment, call us today at 425-361-7499.