Snoring Solutions
Snoring & Sleep Apnea Dentist located in Harrisburg, PA
Snoring Solutions services offered in Harrisburg, PA
Consider snoring solutions if you’re one of the more than 25% of adults who snores regularly. At Pennsylvania Dental Sleep Medicine in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, snoring and sleep apnea dentist, Becky Fox, DMD, FAGD, D-ABDSM, offers noninvasive snoring solutions which can facilitate improvements with your sleep.
Call our office today or use our online tool to request an appointment.
Snoring Solutions Q & A
What are snoring solutions?
Snoring solutions may be surgical and nonsurgical treatments designed to reduce snoring and improve your quality of sleep and overall health and wellness.
If your significant other regularly complains about your snoring habit or you wake up most days with a dry mouth, make an appointment at Pennsylvania Dental Sleep Medicine today.
Who can benefit from snoring solutions?
Your snoring may be "more than just a snore" and a sign of sleep apnea. High-risk factors related to OSA and snoring are:
- Are 50 years or older
- Regularly use alcohol or sedatives before going to bed
- Have a family history of snoring
- Struggle to maintain your ideal weight
- Are a man
- Females who are peri or post-menopausal
- Regular snoring is never normal in children and should be investigated further
You might benefit from snoring solutions but may also have an underlying medical issue that increases your risk of nasal congestion, like allergies or chronic sinus infections, and obstructive sleep apnea.
What are the symptoms of snoring?
At Pennsylvania Dental Sleep Medicine, a snoring evaluation visit begins with a review of your medical records, an oral exam, and possibly radiographic images. Also, we will recommend an evaluation by a physician to rule in or rule out a more significant underlying health condition such as obstructive sleep apnea. You do not know if it's "more than just a snore" without further investigation.
We will discuss your symptoms, including how often you snore, if you take any prescription medication, and how often you wake up at night. If you have completed a sleep study, those results will be reviewed, as well. Pennsylvania Dental Sleep Medicine doesn’t perform or diagnose sleep studies, but they can recommend you to a nearby physician and facility that does. Your PCP or sleep medicine doctor will order your study.
An overnight sleep study monitors your brain waves, breathing activity, heart rate, and eye movements during sleep, or an at-home study may be indicated. Your provider reviews the data the next morning to help determine the best treatment.
What are some examples of snoring solutions?
Pennsylvania Dental Sleep Medicine may recommend different types of nonsurgical snoring solutions, including:
Lifestyle Changes
Sometimes, lifestyle changes, like not drinking alcohol before bed or sleeping on your side, are enough to prevent snoring. Your provider might also recommend eating a nutritious diet and maintaining a healthy weight.
Nasal Strips or dilators
Nasal strips look similar to bandaids. You wear them across the bridge of your nose, and they hold your nostrils open. There are also nasal dilators or cones that work internally. A referral to an ENT for surgical intervention could be an option to discuss as well.
Oral Appliance Therapy
If you have Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) or another condition that blocks your airways during sleep, your provider might recommend a custom oral appliance. An oral appliance positions your lower jaw forward to prevent airway collapse, making it easier to breathe clearly.
Myofunctional Therapy
Myofunctional therapy is exercise for your tongue and loose tissue in the back of your throat. These easy exercises are not complicated, do not cost anything, and are easy to do throughout your day. Myofunctional therapy exercises can improve muscle tone to play an additional role in your combination therapy for OSA and reduce snoring.
Positional Therapy
Positional Therapy may be helpful if your snoring is significantly worse while laying on your back vs your side while sleeping. There are many positional therapy aid devices available to patients. They coach you to sleep on your side and physically prevent you from rolling onto your back throughout the night. Your provider may recommend this additional therapy for combination therapy with other treatments.
How can an oral appliance help with snoring?
Oral appliances improve air intake while you sleep and can reduce or eliminate snoring. The experts at Pennsylvania Dental Sleep Medicine help find the appliance that is best suited for you, comfortable, and nonintrusive.
To learn more about snoring solutions, call Pennsylvania Dental Sleep Medicine or use our booking tool to request an appointment online today.
