Most of us have someone around who snores or we snore ourselves. Also, how many of us have made fun of that Auntie whose snoring can be heard from the other room or recorded dad’s snore to prove to him “he snores!”? All the fun making aside, I would like to bring your attention the seriousness of snoring. Snoring is caused by vibration of uvula at the back of the mouth and the closing or narrowing of the airway.
Snoring during sleep may be a sign of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
Snoring causes sleep deprivation to the snorers themselves and to those around them, as well as daytime drowsiness, irritability and lack of focus. It can cause significant psychological and social damage to sufferers. More importantly, it’s proven there is a positive correlation between loud snoring and risk of heart attack.
It is important to fix or at least improve this issue. There are a couple options available, one of which is surgery.
Some of the excess soft tissue from the throat is removed to widen the upper airway. This may involve removing the tonsils, adenoids and uvula.
Sometimes it’s needed to correct the septum between the nostrils or remove nasal polyps that block airflow through the nose.
Please note, there are risks involved with the surgery like difficulty in swallowing, regurgitating fluids back through the nose when drinking, change of tone of voice and some chance of relapse. Also, most people don’t like to put their bodies through general anaesthesia and surgery which is fair.
A Simple and Effective Way to Deal With Snoring
is a Mandibular Advancement Splint (MAS) or snore device. These devices bring the lower jaw forward and pull the tongue with it and as a result the airway opens up and snoring stops or improves. There are many types of devices available from different companies. Though all work on the same principal, they have small variations that may suit particular cases.
Where to Get a Snore Device?
First, you need to see Excellence in Dentistry for treatment of sleep disorders and we’ll carry out a comprehensive examination of your mouth, nose and throat. After making sure you’re a good candidate for a Snore Device and deciding on the right type of device for you, we’ll take some impressions of your teeth and send them off to the laboratory. A couple weeks later, we’ll try in and fit your device and go through all of the instructions.
What to Expect After?
Your mouth is a sensitive area so the first couple weeks you may get some discomfort but you need to give it time and be patient. You may notice some increase in your saliva or some of your teeth may get a bit sore. As for the snoring some people see the good results immediately from the first night and it may take a couple weeks for others to see the outcome. Majority or patients report their snoring fully goes away or improves significantly within a couple of weeks.
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