Have you ever woken up suddenly during sleep, or experienced snoring or breathing pauses? These symptoms may indicate that you are facingapneaChallenge! This common but easily overlooked health problem not only affects sleep quality, but may also bring long-term health risks.
Discussion on the causes of sleep apnea
Airway obstruction
Airway obstruction is one of the main causes of sleep apnea, usually due to narrowing or blockage of the airway.
Common factors include:
- obesity: Excess fat accumulates around the neck, compressing the airway and increasing the risk of obstruction.
- tonsil hypertrophy: Especially in children, enlarged tonsils may seriously block the airway and affect breathing.
- Deviated nasal septum: A bent nasal septum can block nasal airflow, leading to breathing difficulties and further aggravating breathing disorders during sleep.
Abnormal neuromuscular control
Abnormalities in the nervous system or muscle control may also be important causes of sleep apnea, including:
- Neurological disorders: Such as stroke, Parkinson's disease, etc., may interfere with the brain's control of respiratory muscles and cause intermittent respiratory arrest.
- Drug effects: Certain sedatives or sleeping pills may cause relaxation of breathing muscles, reduce airway tone, and increase the risk of obstruction.
Other possible causes
In addition to the above main causes, there are some potential factors that may cause sleep apnea:
- allergy: An allergic reaction in the nose or throat can cause tissue swelling, blocking the airways.
- Abnormal oral structure：If the jaw is too small or the tongue is too large, it may affect the airway space and increase the risk of obstruction.
Understanding these causes will help to diagnose and treat sleep apnea in a targeted manner and restore healthy sleep and quality of life!
What should I do if conservative treatment fails?Orthognathic surgery is a lifesaver for patients with moderate to severe apnea!
Fenghua United Clinic provides professional treatment to help you get rid of respiratory crisis!
How do oral structural abnormalities lead to sleep apnea?
Narrow palate
Palate stenosis is a common problem of oral structural abnormalities that can significantly affect airway space.
A narrow palate compresses the nasal cavity and upper airway, resulting in airflow obstruction, making it difficult for a person to breathe during sleep.
In addition, narrow jaws may affect tooth alignment, further limiting oral function and indirectly increasing the risk of sleep apnea.
Retruded jaw
Retrognathia is a jawbone abnormality where the jawbone is positioned too far back.The natural position of the tongue root also moves back, closer to the throat.
This structural problem willMakes the tongue more likely to fall back during sleep, blocking the airway, causing intermittent respiratory arrest, especially in the supine sleeping position.
Malalignment of teeth
Improper tooth arrangement not only affects the appearance and bite, but may also change the internal space of the oral cavity and have a potential impact on breathing.
For example, crowded teeth can compress oral structures and reduce the passage of airflow. In addition, an abnormal tooth occlusion may also lead to an imbalance in oral muscle tension, further increasing the likelihood of airway obstruction.
Oral soft tissue problems
Abnormalities of the soft tissues in the mouth are also closely related to sleep apnea. Common problems include:
- tonsil hypertrophy: Enlarged tonsils take up space in the airway, especially in children, and can easily cause respiratory obstruction.
- Long uvula: An overly long uvula can easily block the laryngeal airway during sleep, causing airflow obstruction.
- Relaxed soft palate: A soft palate structure with insufficient muscle tone will reduce airway openness and increase the likelihood of sleep apnea.
A comprehensive examination of the oral structure and function is the key to diagnosing and treating sleep apnea. Oral surgeons can provide personalized solutions to the above problems and improve patients’ breathing and sleep quality!
How to detect respiratory arrest?
Sleep test
Polysomnography (PSG) is the gold standard for diagnosing sleep apnea.
This examination is usually performed in a sleep laboratory by monitoring the patient's physiological data throughout the night of sleep, including brain waves, heartbeat, blood oxygen concentration, airflow, breathing rate, and limb movement.
- importance: Sleep studies can accurately record the number and severity of apnea, helping doctors distinguish between obstructive, central or mixed apnea.
- Portable options: In recent years, there have also been home sleep examination devices that provide patients with a more convenient initial diagnosis method.
Oral examination
Oral surgeons play an important role in diagnosing sleep apnea, and they perform detailed examinations to identify structural problems associated with airway obstruction:
- Jaw and bite condition: Assess for problems such as a retruded lower jaw or narrow upper jaw.
- Tongue and oral soft tissues: Check the size of the tongue, the position of the tongue root, and whether the uvula, tonsils, etc. are enlarged or abnormal.
- Tooth arrangement: Analyze whether the airway space is affected by crowding or poor occlusion.
Through examination, the doctor can quickly identify the underlying cause of airway narrowing and work with other specialists to provide comprehensive treatment recommendations, such as orthognathic surgery combined with dental correction treatment.
Integrating the results of relevant examinations can provide patients with a complete diagnosis and assist in developing targeted treatment plans to improve sleep apnea!
What should I do if conservative treatment fails?Orthognathic surgery is a lifesaver for patients with moderate to severe apnea!
Fenghua United Clinic provides professional treatment to help you get rid of respiratory crisis!
Treatments for sleep apnea
Adjust your lifestyle
Lifestyle changes are the first strategy for improving mild to moderate sleep apnea and are also important for long-term results:
- lose weight: Being overweight is an important risk factor for sleep apnea. Reducing fat accumulation in the neck can effectively relieve airway pressure and improve airway patency.
- Quitting smoking：Smoking can cause inflammation and swelling of the respiratory tract, aggravating the problem of respiratory obstruction, so quitting smoking is one of the key improvement measures.
- Side Sleeping: When sleeping on your back, the tongue and soft tissues are more likely to fall back and block the airway; changing to a side sleeping position can reduce the occurrence of this situation.
These simple daily adjustments will not only improve your breathing, but also help improve your overall health.
Oral appliance therapy
Oral device therapy is a non-invasive option for people with mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea:
- principle: The device is usually worn between the upper and lower teeth and increases the openness of the airway by slightly advancing the jaw or securing the tongue.
- Target customers: Suitable for patients who are unwilling or unable to receive continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment, and can also be used as an auxiliary solution after surgery.
- Effect: Professionally adjusted oral devices can significantly reduce the number of breathing pauses and improve symptoms such as snoring and daytime sleepiness.
Orthognathic surgery
For patients with more severe structural problems, orthognathic surgery is an effective, long-term solution:
- Jaw advancement surgery: Move the retracted lower jaw forward to increase airway space.
- Two-jaw surgery: Adjust the position of the upper and lower jaws and improve the overall structure of the respiratory tract.
- Hyoid bone suspension surgery: Fix the tongue root through surgery to prevent it from falling backwards.
It is usually suitable for moderate to severe patients with obvious structural problems who have not responded to other treatments.
Orthognathic surgery can fundamentally solve the problem of structural airway obstruction and has a significant improvement effect on most patients.
Based on the individual situation of each patient, the doctor will recommend the most suitable treatment plan. Only by combining various treatment methods can the symptoms of sleep apnea be effectively improved and the quality of life be improved!
How can Fenghua Joint Clinic help you treat apnea?
Jaw structure and bite examination and assessment
At Feng Hua Clinic, our professional team will conduct a comprehensive jaw structure and bite examination and assessment to find out the root cause of sleep apnea:
- Structural inspection: Analyze whether your upper and lower jaws and tooth arrangement affect the airway space.
- Assist in arranging home sleep testing
- Comprehensive diagnosis: Combined with the results of sleep examination, a personalized treatment plan is developed to help you effectively improve your symptoms.
Orthognathic surgery
For moderate to severe sleep apnea caused by structural problems, Fenghua Clinic provides advanced orthognathic surgery:
- Surgical expertise: An experienced team of oral and maxillofacial surgeons perform precise corrections for problems such as mandibular retrusion and upper jaw narrowing.
- Personalized planning: Design a suitable surgical plan based on the patient's jawbone structure and airway condition, such as mandibular advancement or double jaw surgery, to improve airway patency.
- Safety of surgery: The clinic uses the latest surgical techniques and equipment to ensure safety and effectiveness during treatment.
Postoperative follow-up and care
Fenghua Joint Clinic attaches great importance to the postoperative recovery and long-term health of each patient:
- Regular follow-up: Arrange multiple follow-up visits after the operation to continuously track the improvement of the respiratory tract and ensure stable treatment effects.
- All-round support: Provide advice on postoperative diet and lifestyle adjustments, as well as necessary rehabilitation treatment to help patients recover quickly.
- Continuing Care: The clinic team will keep in touch with patients regularly to ensure that problems are discovered and resolved in a timely manner.
Through accurate diagnosis and professional treatment, Fenghua Joint Clinic is committed to helping every patient regain smooth breathing and high-quality sleep, and improve overall health and well-being!
