Sleep Dentistry in Wahpeton, ND

What Is Sleep Apnea?

Sleep apnea is a condition that affects a person’s breathing while sleeping. It is characterized by snoring and pauses in breathing that occur while you sleep, resulting in poor quality sleep. When you lay down to sleep, especially on your back, the soft tissues of your mouth and throat relax and obstruct your airway.

Snoring is a sign of a partially obstructed airway. As you breathe in, the air moves over the tissues of your mouth and throat resulting in vibrations that create the snoring sound you hear.

When the airway is completely blocked you will stop breathing for seconds at a time, which causes you to wake up enough to change positions and resume breathing. This interrupts your natural sleep cycle and prevents you from reaching the deep sleep that is required for adequate rest and rejuvenation.

Procedures Offered

It is important to note that prior to treatment of sleep apnea in our office, we often refer you for a sleep study which measures how well you sleep and how your body responds to sleep problems.

We provide the following sleep dentistry services:

• Snoring Therapy. Snoring can not only prevent you from getting quality sleep, it also affects your spouse, partner, roommate, or anyone else who shares close sleeping quarters. We can create a custom snoring mouthpiece that will position your jaw in such a way that you stop snoring.
• Sleep Apnea Treatment. Improper breathing while you sleep prevents you from getting the rest you need and can lead to other health problems. A custom sleep apnea mouthpiece can reposition your jaw to keep your airway open while you sleep. In some cases surgery to the soft tissues of your mouth and throat may provide a permanent solution to sleep apnea.