Tag: oral appliance therapy

If you’ve seen a doctor for a chronic snoring problem or been diagnosed with sleep apnea, there’s a good chance you may have been prescribed a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) mask. While CPAP masks have long been the “gold standard” in snoring and sleep apnea treatment and can be extremely effective if used correctly, the biggest problem with this treatment method is that compliance rates are very low. In other words, patients do not use the CPAP machine as directed and therefore their symptoms are not adequately managed.

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What many individuals do not realize is that there are other non-surgical options that effectively treat symptoms of snoring and sleep apnea. At Park Avenue Oral & Facial Surgery we are pleased to offer one such option.

 

Dr. Ruben Cohen has helped hundreds of patients dealing with snoring and sleep apnea using custom oral appliances, also known as mandibular advancement devices. These devices are fitted to the specific needs of the patient and they work by effectively opening the airway during sleep.

Oral Appliances for Sleep Apnea in NYC

A custom-made oral appliance device looks similar to a mouth guard you might wear while playing sports such as football or basketball. It works by repositioning the tongue inside the mouth and advancing the lower jaw slightly, both of which will help with maintaining an open airway and preventing obstruction during sleep. The appliance is fully adjustable, and will be custom fitted to suit your specific needs depending on the severity of your sleep apnea and snoring.

 

In conjunction with weight loss (the leading risk factor associated with obstructive sleep apnea), oral appliances can be a highly successful treatment option for patients with mild to moderate sleep apnea. If you or a loved one snores, but you aren’t sure whether it’s sleep apnea, take our snore quiz to evaluate your level of risk.

 

It is important that patients treated with oral appliance therapy receive ongoing care so that Dr. Cohen can assess and monitor the sleep disorder, as well as the condition of the oral appliance and how the patient is responding to the device. If necessary, Dr. Cohen can make adjustments to improve your comfort level and ensure that it’s as convenient as possible to wear the device each night. Compliance is critical to the success of this treatment. However, unlike CPAP masks, most patients find oral appliances quite tolerable and easy to use on a regular basis.

 

For those patients with more severe sleep apnea who may have tried CPAP or oral appliance therapy without success, Dr. Cohen is also trained to perform advanced surgical procedures (including some minimally invasive procedures) that can permanently eliminate symptoms by treating the underlying cause(s) of your condition.

 

If you’re looking for an alternative to your CPAP mask or perhaps your significant other has pleaded with you to find a solution to your snoring, we are here to help. No matter what your unique circumstance, Dr. Cohen will find a treatment option that works best for you.

 

To schedule an appointment, you can contact us by email or call our office at (212) 988-6725. You can also schedule your visit by submitting your information in the form on the right-hand side of this page. We look forward to helping you and your bed partner get the restful, restorative sleep you both need to be at your best!

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We all know that a little bit of snoring here and there is perfectly normal. So how do you know when it’s snoring that you’re dealing with and when it’s sleep apnea?Rest assured, we get this question all the time. And the answer is that while a formal diagnosis has to be done by us here in the office, you may be able to get a better idea of which scenario you are dealing with simply by answering a few questions at home.

Here are some of the most commonly reported symptoms of sleep apnea. Do you experience any (or several) of these? If so, give us a quick call and we can schedule a consultation to diagnose (or rule out) and treat your condition.

• Snoring with pauses, after which choking or gasping follow. Ask a bed partner to observe your sleep habits or set up a recorder overnight.
• Excessive sleepiness (falling asleep) during the day. This happens because the breathing pauses during the night cause your brain to repeatedly disturb your sleep just enough to make you start breathing again. Consequently, you never spend enough time in the restful part of sleep to be fully rested the next day.
• Memory problems, concentration problems
• Headaches, especially in the morning
• Frequent trips to the bathroom during the night
• Dry mouth in the morning
• Moodiness, irritability and depression

While sleep apnea is a fairly common sleep disorder, it is an important one to tackle because it can cause damage to the organs over time. Treatment options range from CPAP machines that give pressurized oxygen while you sleep to surgery.

If you think that you may have sleep apnea, please don’t hesitate to contact us for a consultation.

To learn more about snoring and sleep apnea, please visit Dr. Cohen’s article in the Huffington Post, “Snoring and Sleep Apnea: What’s the Difference?”

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