Dr. Mogell Dental Blog

Boca Raton Cosmetic Dentist

Sleep, Breathing and Silent Stroke

Friday, February 03, 2012

Most people have never heard of them but there are these sneaky things called "silent strokes". Silent strokes do the same type of tissue damage in the brain but there are no outward symptoms like you have with a regular stroke.

Research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference made a link between silent stroke and sleep apnea.The researchers evaluated stroke patients for sleep breathing disorders and they found 91% of the study population had sleep apnea. The researchers also performed brain scans on the patients and found that those with sleep apnea were more likely to have silent strokes. Having more than five episodes of apnea per night was linked to the silent strokes and the worse the case of sleep apnea, the more likely the patient experienced silent strokes.

This important research underscores the need to treat sleep breathing disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea. However, there are two problems healthcare providers face when it comes to these patients.

First, most people who have sleep apnea do not know it. Patients are usually diagnosed only when a bed partner complains about the snoring and gasping or their daytime sleepiness forces them to seek a medical opinion.

Secondly, once a diagnosis is made the first line of treatment is usually CPAP. While CPAP is a lifesaving therapy about half of patients find it impossible to sleep with a CPAP machine. They find the masks uncomfortable, the machine annoying and refuse to continue the therapy.

For mild to moderate sleep apnea a wonderful alternative for these patients is an oral appliance. An oral appliance is a small device that looks like a mouthguard. The appliance is created by a dentist who has special training in the field of dental sleep medicine. The appliance is designed to place the jaw in a position that enables the airway to stay open all night long - no more stoppages of breathing.

To find out if you may suffer from sleep apnea or if you have been diagnosed and cannot tolerate your CPAP please contact Dr. Kenneth Mogell in Boca Raton, FL at 561-487-5595.

Labels: obstructive sleep apnea