Obstructive Sleep Apnea in overland park

What Is Sleep Apnea?

Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder and while there are three different types of sleep apnea, by far the most common is Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). It’s defined by the complete or partial collapse of your airway which doesn’t allow or heavily restricts oxygen rich airflow during sleep. This causes your brain to violently exit deeper levels of sleep to send signals to your heart to beat faster and stronger, among many other signals to the rest of your body. Many people have heart rates similar to a very brisk walk or mild jog instead of recovering at night! This not only significantly disrupts your sleep and your body’s ability to heal, it puts extreme stress on your heart and the rest of your body even if you don’t remember any of it. OSA may also lead to serious illnesses due to its reduction of oxygen levels.

This combination of disturbed sleep and oxygen starvation may contribute to ailments including hypertension, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, sexual dysfunction, erectile dysfunction and depression, plus a significantly higher risk of accidents, including those in the workplace and while driving. People with Obstructive Sleep Apnea often have enlarged tissues in their throat or their muscle tone allows for the airway to constrict or collapse. At the Art of Dentistry we can scan your airway with state of the art 3D technology to assist in the screening of Obstructive Sleep Apnea. Schedule an appointment with your dentist in Overland Park to treat your obstructive sleep apnea symptoms!

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Did you know…

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Cavities are the leading cause of tooth extraction and tooth loss. Keep your smile healthy at home to avoid tooth decay and save your teeth!

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Understanding The Tooth Extraction Process

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Cleaning & preparation

To begin the tooth extraction process, Dr. Kirkegaard will clean the area and numb your mouth to ensure you feel no pain or discomfort. We also offer sedation options to further increase your comfort throughout your procedure.

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Basic tooth extraction

If you are getting a basic or “simple,” extraction, Dr. Kirkegaard will use special tools to loosen the tooth and prepare it for removal. Then, when it’s been loosened sufficiently, he will pull it out with a pair of dental forceps.

Surgical extraction

Surgical extractions are required for teeth that have not fully erupted. In this process, Dr. Kirkegaard will make a small opening in the gums near your tooth. Then, he will cut the tooth into pieces and remove it through this opening.

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Suturing the area

Once your tooth has been extracted, the surgical site will be disinfected and sutured to ensure proper healing. You’ll be sent home with a set of recovery instructions to follow as your mouth heals from treatment.

Treatment for Sleep Apnea

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Mandibular Advancement Device

While severe obstructive sleep apnea will need to be treated with a CPAP machine, many mild to moderate cases of sleep apnea can be treated with a simple mouthguard that is custom-made for you based on your mouth’s impressions.

The mouthguard will gently push your jaw forward to hold your airway open while you sleep. This prevents blockages in your airway that would stop you from breathing. Many patients prefer mouthguards for treating sleep apnea as opposed to CPAP because it is much more comfortable and less claustrophobic.

Did you know…

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About 178 million Americans are missing at least one tooth and nearly 40 million Americans have lost all their teeth.

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Optisleep

OPTISLEEP is an oral appliance that is worn at night during sleep to treat snoring or mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea. The two-piece appliance keeps the jaw in a forward position and allows the upper airway to stay open. This prevents the blocking of the airway.

Benefits of OPTISLEEP

  • Comfortable: The extremely slim design makes wearing the appliance especially comfortable.
  • Durable: The durable material and connector design make OPTISLEEP especially stable.
  • Custom-designed: The digital design of OPTISLEEP eliminates the need for unpleasant impressions and ensures a high level of accuracy.
  • Optimal flexibility: OPTISLEEP comes with exchangeable connectors, allowing wide-range movement of the lower jaw.
  • Easy to clean & safe transport: OPTISLEEP is stored in an appealing container, ideal for home and travelling.

Have questions Sleep Apnea? Find answers here.

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Recognize the Symptoms

Many symptoms can indicate sleep apnea, but they may go unnoticed if you’re very busy or find yourself tired all the time. It soon becomes normal to feel fatigued and people often blame it on their hectic schedules.

However, the biggest indicator of sleep apnea is constant and chronic fatigue that doesn’t seem to let up no matter how long you sleep. Other symptoms include:

  • Snoring
  • Daytime fatigue
  • Headaches
  • Dry mouth
  • Irritability/mood swings
  • Wake up gasping for air
  • Teeth grinding
  • Memory and attention difficulties
  • TMJ
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What Happens If I Don’t Treat Sleep Apnea?

If you don’t treat sleep apnea as soon as possible, it can cause serious health conditions, including diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and hypertension. Failing to treat sleep apnea can result in a shorter lifespan due lower oxygen levels, increased stress on the heart and substantially lower quality of life.

Depriving the brain of oxygen can cause damage to the brain and the rest of the body and when this occurs repeatedly throughout the night, every single night, it’s not hard to see why this is so problematic.

At The Art of Dentistry, we can a 3D scan of your airway to look for airway constrictions and assess your symptoms to determine if taking an at home sleep study to get a diagnosis to begin treatment so that you can sleep peacefully at night.

We proudly serve the dental patients of Overland Park, Louisburg, and all other surrounding areas. Please contact us with any questions you have about sleep apnea.

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Unobstructed sleep apnea can increase the risk of

- diabetes
- driving accidents
- heart attack
- high blood pressure
- irregular heartbeat
- severe weight gain
- sexual dysfunctions
- stroke
- work-related accidents

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How does my dentist help with Obstructive Sleep Apnea?

Among the other unique services offered by Dr. Kirkegaard’s team is their partnership with a sleep physician. You may not realize this, but there is a strong connection between a good night’s rest, oral health, and your general wellbeing. Sleep apnea can result in, among other things, severe grinding of our teeth, cardiovascular disease, stroke, heart attack, hypertension, and many other life threatening conditions. By working hand-in-hand with the physician, Dr. Kirkegaard’s team can help treat sleep apnea and even snoring. Even if you have tried and failed a CPAP, inquire about the creation of an oral appliance fitted specifically to you that can drastically change your (and your bed partner’s) life without all the cords!

We can administer a sleep test you take in the comfort of your own home and have a sleep physician interpret and diagnose the results to see how your quality of life can be improved.

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sleep apnea facts

The American Sleep Apnea Association calls sleep apnea “a debilitating and life-shortening ailment that’s estimated to affect 22 million Americans”; in its “Global Surveillance, Prevention and Control of Chronic Respiratory Diseases: A Comprehensive Approach,” World Health Organization estimates sleep apnea affects 100 million people worldwide, calling it “the most common organic sleep disorder.”

Mandibular Advancement Device Facts

  1. 76% of patients reported a reduction in daytime tiredness when wearing an oral appliance
  2. 84% of patients reported an improvement in the quality of night sleep when wearing an oral appliance1 90% of patients reported a reduction of snoring and apneas when wearing an oral appliance