Snoring and Sleep Apnea
The Greek word "apnea" literally means "without breath." There are three types of apnea: obstructive, central, and mixed; of the three, obstructive is the most common. Despite the difference in the root cause of each type, in all three, people with untreated sleep apnea stop breathing repeatedly during their sleep, sometimes hundreds of times during the night and often for a minute or longer.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is caused by a blockage of the airway, usually when the soft tissue in the rear of the throat collapses and closes during sleep. In central sleep apnea, the airway is not blocked but the brain fails to signal the muscles to breathe. Mixed apnea, as the name implies, is a combination of the two. With each apnea event, the brain briefly arouses people with sleep apnea in order for them to resume breathing, but consequently sleep is extremely fragmented and of poor quality.

Sleep apnea is very common and affects more than twelve million Americans, according to the National Institutes of Health. Sleep apnea can strike anyone at any age, even children.

Symptoms of sleep apnea include loud snoring, excessive daytime sleepiness, high blood pressure and other cardiovascular complications, morning headaches, memory problems, feelings of depression, reflux, nocturia , impotence and have a substantial negative effect on lifespan. Moreover, untreated sleep apnea may be responsible for job impairment and motor vehicle crashes. Fortunately, sleep apnea can be diagnosed and treated. Several treatment options exist, and research into additional options continues.

The American Academy of Sleep Physicians have announced that oral appliance therapy should be offered as a first line of treatment for those with mild to moderate OSA, and as an option to those patients with severe OSA who have difficulty complying with the use of CPAP. Other treatments for sleep apnea include: avoidance of alcohol and medications that relax the airway and/or reduce respiratory drive, weight loss, avoid sleeping on the back, surgery, continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP).

Dr. Scott Pope is trained in the treatment of sleep apnea and snoring using oral appliance therapy. The OASYS and the TAP appliance are two of the finest appliances available for OSA therapy and both are FDA approved. The TAP is a popular and proven appliance for opening the throat and the OASYS is unique in that it opens both the throat and the nasal airway. Both appliances are comfortable and easy to wear.