When you have obstructive sleep apnea, you have different treatment choices available to you. After you have a sleep study, you will learn how severe your symptoms are, and the doctor will give you options for treatment after they know more about your medical history, and the way that your upper airway is structured. Your doctor can discuss different treatment options that are available to you. When deciding on the right treatment option, your sleep specialist or doctor will know what is best for you.

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When you have obstructive sleep apnea, during sleep your airway has physical obstructions. This is something to consider when deciding on treatment options. Muscles relax in the airway during sleep that are not relaxed during the waking hours during OSA. Apneas are blockages that make breathing totally stop for a minimum of ten seconds. Hypopnea occurs when one’s breathing is dramatically cut down for at least ten seconds. Sleepiness during the day time, and waking up several times during the night, can be caused by apneas and hypopneas. Treatment for hypopneas and apneas stop sleep from becoming fragmented, so sleepiness is lessened. Apneas will mean hypopneas also for the remainder of the article to make it easier to understand. Making the airway wider is the goal of any and all sleep apnea treatments, as they help eliminate the obstructions from happening. Finding the exact reason that the obstruction occurs is usually difficult, and they can be present in more than one place.

Since gravity causes the airway to become blocked by the tongue, and/ or other muscles of the airway to collapse during sleeping on one’s back, or the supine position, positional therapy is often used. Sleeping in a different position will often cut down on the amount of apneas that are experienced. Putting a sock filled with tennis balls pinned to the back of the nightshirt, may allow the person to avoid rolling over into the supine position. There are also products like cushions and tubes that are made to keep the person from sleeping in the back position. There are now pillows that are designed to keep the neck in a position so that the airway stays open during sleep. The FDA has many companies that have registered with them for approval of pillows for sleep apnea that is mild, as well as for snoring. When a person starts to sleep on their back, there are alarms out there that can awaken the person to keep them off their back. For some however, the alarm may cause sleep to be too disrupted, and can cause problems with sleep fragmentation.

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The reduction of apneas has also been witnessed when one lies on the back and from the waist up is in an elevated position. This study showed that the airway collapsed less. Soft pillows that can put the chin in a position that makes apnea worse should not be used. There are foam pillows that are said to reduce apnea.

Losing weight may make symptoms of sleep apnea disappear. Obstructions occur more often when there is excess fat found around the neck area. Many times, people who have mild apnea that are overweight, can find effective treatment for apnea by losing weight. If not cured, sleep apnea symptoms may be lessened with weight loss. Sleep apnea causes you to be tired, so losing weight can be difficult if you are too tired to exercise, or are eating more to try to stay awake. Since there can be serious repercussions to leaving OSA untreated, using an alternate means of treatment is advisable until your weight loss goals are achieved. Before starting any weight loss regimen, your doctor should be consulted, and asked about the other health benefits of weight loss.

Excess weight isn’t the only reason that an airway may close when sleeping. People who are not overweight can also suffer from sleep apnea.

Different medications as well as alcohol can act as central nervous system depressants. These can include tranquilizers, muscle relaxers, and pain medication. They should be avoided because they cause the airway to relax more, as well as slow respiration,  thereby making apneas happen more often. It may be better to stay away from alcohol and central nervous system depressants when it is almost bedtime. If you have any questions about your prescription or over the counter medications, and their potential affect on sleep apnea, your pharmacist or doctor should be consulted. If you are taking central nervous system depressants on a regular basis, your prescribed treatment for sleep apnea may need to be changed.

Dental appliances, also known as oral applications that keep the airway open, are used to treat apnea in different ways. By using a mandibular advancement device that pushes the bottom jaw forward, or by using a tongue retaining device that stops the tongue from blocking the airway, or sometimes, both treatments are warranted to treat sleep apnea. In most cases, dental appliances perform better for people who are not overweight, but some people who are obese have found relief from sleep apnea that is moderate to severe.  A dentist will use a mandibular advancement device that is adjustable to help align the jaw forward or backward as necessary for proper treatment. The patient’s most effective and comfortable position is sought. Oral appliances may make apnea worse in some patients. Your sleep doctor will need to refer you to a dentist that knows about sleep apnea if you decide to try this type of therapy, since some dentists do not have the necessary skill set needed to manipulate oral devices.

For some, surgery can be used to better open airways to lessen apneas during sleep.  In some, surgery can make apnea worse. Different types of surgery result in various success rates, depending on the patient. Inserting three small polyester rods into the soft palate can often harden the soft palate, or get rid of tissue that is obstructing the airway without the use of surgery. The ASAA publication, “Considering Surgery for OSA?,” is a good way to gain knowledge of this type of procedure.

Gently blowing air from a room into the throat to keep it open is known as Continuous Positive Airway Pressure, or CPAP. The machine is set to the pressure needed to stop apneas that cause sleep fragmentation and waking up during the night.  To eliminate the apneas, the pressure has to be set to the correct level.

For treating obstructive sleep apnea, the most effective therapy is through the use of CPAP. The most common concerns with CPAP therapy can usually be eliminated quite easily. If you are having problems or discomfort with your CPAP therapy, your home care company representative, or your doctor should be contacted.