Sleep Apnea Treatments

Personalized Solutions for Restless Nights

If you are someone who wakes during the night, snores constantly, or awakens each morning still feeling exhausted, you may have a condition known as sleep apnea. This sleep disorder occurs when the airway becomes blocked in some way, usually due to some form of choking such as the tongue relaxing and falling back further into the mouth. This can lead to some serious associated health concerns such as a lack of mental wellness, drowsiness on the road, workplace productivity, and even death.

At the Sleep Center at Baptist Hospitals of Southeast Texas, our team of sleep experts offers solutions that can help patients sleep better and feel like themselves again. By ensuring the airway stays open and that oxygen continues to flow, we have helped many people to reclaim the benefits of a restful night’s sleep in their lives.

Possible Treatment Options

The most common way to resolve sleep apnea is through the use of a continuous positive airway pressure device (CPAP). This device sends a constant stream of air into either the nostrils or the mouth to keep the airway open through the night. Your breathing stays regulated and you no longer have to deal with regular interruptions of sleep.

While the CPAP device is the most popular, other sleep apnea treatments may be:

• BiPAP – While a CPAP maintains constant pressure, a BiPAP is designed to offer two different pressures; one for inhalation and the other for exhalation
• Oral Appliances – Prescribed by a dentist, an oral appliance to reposition the jaw may be appropriate for those with to moderate OSA who have been unable to tolerate PAP therapy.
• Surgery – There are a number of operations to help the airway stay open during sleep. A few of these are uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP) surgery where soft palate tissue is removed to avoid reverberations that cause snoring, nasal surgery where the nose itself is adjusted to allow for better airflow, and Hyoid advancement where the airway is expanded by moving the hyoid bone away from the base of the tongue
• Lifestyle changes – Through weight loss, cessation of smoking, and reduction of alcohol intake, it can be possible to reduce symptoms of sleep apnea
• Medications – While medication is usually not a primary treatment option, some medications can help a person sleep better or combat the effects of a bad night’s sleep throughout the day
• Sleep hygiene changes – In some cases, simply altering the time you fall asleep and arise may be enough to improve sleep apnea problems