Sleep Apnea Treatment

How Is Sleep Apnea Treated? (NHLBI)
Treatment is aimed at restoring regular nighttime breathing and relieving symptoms such as very loud snoring and daytime sleepiness. Treatment will also help associated medical problems, such as high blood pressure, and reduce the risk for heart attack and stroke.

Changes in Activities or Habits
If you have mild sleep apnea, some changes in daily activities or habits may be all that are needed:
· Avoid alcohol, smoking, and medicines that make you sleepy. They make it harder for your throat to stay open while you sleep.
· Lose weight if you are overweight. Even a little weight loss can improve your symptoms.
· Sleep on your side instead of your back. Sleeping on your side may help keep your throat open.

People with moderate or severe sleep apnea will need to make these changes as well. They also will need other treatments, such as the following.

Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is the most common treatment for sleep apnea. For this treatment, you wear a mask over your nose during sleep. The mask blows air into your throat at a pressure level that is right for you. The increased airway pressure keeps the throat open while you sleep. The air pressure is adjusted so that it is just enough to stop the airways from briefly getting too small during sleep.

Treating sleep apnea may help you stop snoring. Stopping snoring does not mean that you no longer have sleep apnea or that you can stop using CPAP. Sleep apnea will return if CPAP is stopped or if it is not used correctly.

CPAP treatment may cause side effects in some people. Some side effects are:
· Dry or stuffy nose
· Irritation of the skin on your face
· Bloating of your stomach
· Sore eyes
· Headaches

People with severe sleep apnea symptoms generally feel much better once they begin treatment with CPAP.

Oral Appliance Treatment (See next page)
A mouthpiece (oral appliance) may be helpful in some people with mild sleep apnea. A custom-fit plastic mouthpiece will be made by a dentist. The mouthpiece will adjust your lower jaw and your tongue to help keep the airway in your throat open while you are sleeping. Air can then flow easily into your lungs because there is less resistance to breathing.

Possible side effects of the mouthpiece include damage to your teeth, gums or jaws. Follow up with your dentist to check for any side effects and to be sure that your mouthpiece fits.

(**The position of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine is that oral appliance therapy is useful for the treatment of mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea.)

Surgery
Some people with sleep apnea may benefit from surgery. The type of surgery depends on the cause of the sleep apnea.
· Surgery may be done to remove the tonsils and adenoids if they are blocking the airway. This surgery is especially helpful for children.
· Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UP3) is a surgery that removes the tonsils, uvula (the tissue that hangs from the middle of the back of the roof
   of the mouth), and part of your soft palate (the roof of your mouth in the back of your throat). This surgery is only effective for some people
   with sleep apnea.
· Laser-assisted uvulopalatoplasty (LAUP) is a surgery that can stop snoring but is probably not helpful in treating sleep apnea. A laser
   device is used to remove the uvula and part of the soft palate. Because this surgery stops the main symptom of sleep apnea (snoring), it is
   important to have a sleep study first.
· Tracheostomy is a surgery used in severe sleep apnea. A small hole is made in the windpipe and a tube is inserted. Air will flow through the
   tube and into the lungs. This surgery is very successful but is needed only in patients not responding to all other possible treatments.

Other possible surgeries for some people with sleep apnea include:
· Rebuilding the lower jaw
· Surgery on the nose
· Surgery to treat obesity

Currently, there are no medicines for the treatment of sleep apnea.