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What Is A Sleep Dentist?

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A dentist is a dental specialist who specializes in oral appliances and other dental products for the treatment of sleep apnea. Generally, a dentist with sleep apnea works with other doctors to identify and treat sleep apnea patients.

Next, complaints such as snoring, daytime sleepiness, gasping during sleep, and experiencing delays in breathing during the night are usually presented by the patient to a family doctor. The patient will also be referred to a sleep specialist by the family doctor or directly for a sleep study or home sleep examination.

After the diagnosis of sleep apnea has been identified, the patient may be referred to an oral appliance for sleep apnea treatment. Professionals who have expertise in sleep dentistry are developing these dental products. Such systems are similar to night guards-mouthpieces or mouth guards snoring.

The dentist usually takes an impression of a bite using a dental tray that fits in the mouth. The patient bites down onto the putty that makes an impression of the teeth. This impression kit is then sent to a dental laboratory which manufactures the oral device for sleep apnea. The specialist in sleep dentistry would then determine the dental device’s location and fit. Sometimes, to assess its effectiveness, the patient may repeat the sleep analysis with the oral appliance.

A fast-emerging area of dental practice is the field of sleep dentistry. Sleep dentists work to better diagnose and treat their patients with the best available methods in partnership with doctors who specialize in sleep medicine. To treat problems like snoring and sleep apnea, dentists who practice dental sleep medicine concentrate on using custom-fit oral appliances.

Sleep apnea, after insomnia, is the second most prevalent sleep condition. Sleep apnea affects one in four adult males and one in nine adult females in the United States alone, and the deficits that it can cause are far-reaching. Sleep apnea is associated with varying levels of cognitive, social, job-related and school-related performance problems. It is a risk factor for dementia, anxiety, stroke , heart attack, and other chronic diseases as well.

Sleep problems are greatly underdiagnosed, never tested for up to 80 percent of those with sleep apnea. While in the United States there are around 6,000 board-certified sleep doctors, there are also 3,300 certified sleep dentists with AADSM. Together, these organizations will work to provide patients with appropriate treatment.

Dental Sleep Medicine

Dental Sleep Medicine is a field of research that focuses on the treatment by the use of oral appliance therapy and upper airway surgery of sleep-related breathing disorders, including snoring and obstructive sleep apnea.

The most used oral device is the form that advances the lower jaw during Crazy sleep: the device for mandibular advancement.

The mandible is moved further forward, widening the upper airway to avoid collapses, preventing or reducing snoring and obstructive sleep apnea.

The Crazy is ideally custom-made, both from the lower and upper jaw to match exactly on your teeth. This is a work of precision that requires a specialized dentist. It can also be used in upper and/or lower jaw patients with an edentulous upper jaw or can be attached to dental implants.

In close collaboration with your general practitioner and/or specialist, certain dentists have trained in this matter and aim to offer the most optimal and advanced care possible.

Are You Looking for a Sleep Apnea Specialist You Can Trust?

With over 30 years of professional experience helping patients renew and beautifying their smiles, Balfour Dental continues to be the preferred dental office for families in Brentwood California and the surrounding communities of Antioch, Oakley, Discovery Bay and beyond. Dr. Rayani and Dr. Siao both have many different certifications, including Invisalign Certification, Implant Dentistry, Sleep Apnea Treatment, Cerec CAD-CAM Restorations, Neuromuscular Dentistry, and Implants respectively. Our dental office is locally owned and operated by Dr. Dimple Rayani and Dr. Sien Siao, two professionals with vast experience in Implant Retained Denture treatments as well as in general dentistry.  If you are looking to renew your smile, contact Balfour Dental today!

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