More About Sleep Apnea and Treatment from Alexander Dental in St. Augustine, FL

Dr. James Alexander is passionate about helping those suffering with sleep apnea. Healthy sleep is vital for your wellbeing, and sleep apnea will severely disrupt healthy sleep. Inadequate sleep can contribute to weight gain, problems with concentration, cardiovascular disease, and extreme daytime drowsiness. This means that sleep apnea can be extremely detrimental for your health, and it can even increase your risk of death. That’s why Dr. Alexander was inspired to offer sleep apnea therapy at our St. Augustine, Florida dental office.

So what is sleep apnea? Sleep apnea is a disorder that causes long pauses in breathing while you’re asleep. There are three types of sleep apnea: obstructive, central, and mixed. Obstructive is the most common type of sleep apnea, and it is also the type that Dr. Alexander can treat with sleep apnea therapy from Alexander Dental. The pauses in breathing can be long – a minute or even longer – and they can happen hundreds of times every night.

Obstructive sleep apnea, as the name suggests, is caused by an obstruction of the airway, which usually happens because the soft tissues collapse into the throat. Central sleep apnea is caused by malfunctioning brain signals, and mixed sleep apnea is a little bit of both. Whatever type of sleep apnea you may be suffering from, your brain will partially awaken in order to jump start breathing when the pause is detected. That’s why sleep apnea makes you so tired. Peak incidences can last up to a full minute or longer.

What factors make you more likely to suffer from sleep apnea? Men experience sleep apnea more often than women. Being overweight increases your risk, as does being over 40. Still, even if you have none of the risk factors for sleep apnea, you should explore the possibility that you’re suffering from this problem if you’re experiencing the signs and symptoms.

Once you’ve explored more information about sleep apnea and the available treatments, contact Alexander Dental in St. Augustine, Florida to discuss diagnosis and possible treatment planning. Patients from Palm Coast, Palm Valley, Jacksonville, Jacksonville Beach, and surrounding Florida communities visit Dr. Alexander for sleep apnea therapy. Whether you’re just getting started with your sleep apnea treatment or have tried CPAP and been unsuccessful, contact us for more information.