Top 10 Sleep Apnea Doctors Near Me - What You Need To Know - Breathing Cycle (2023)

FAQs

What is the newest treatment for sleep apnea? ›

For years, the most common treatment for millions of people with sleep apnea involved wearing a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) mask. That is, until the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently approved a new, maskless treatment option -- the Inspire upper airway stimulation device.

An evaluation by a heart specialist, known as a cardiologist, or a doctor who specializes in the nervous system, called a neurologist, might be necessary to look for causes of central sleep apnea.

A pulmonologist can prescribe a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine to help you breathe at night. They can also diagnose you with any other lung conditions that could be affecting your sleep, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

While there is no cure for sleep apnea, studies show that certain lifestyle factors can reverse or make your sleep apnea less intense. Other treatment or surgical options can also reverse the condition. Sleep apnea happens when your upper airway muscles relax while you sleep. This causes you to not get enough air.

EPAP: Expiratory positive airway pressure (EPAP) therapy is a newer alternative to CPAP. Instead of using a machine that delivers pressurized air, a nasal EPAP device uses valves to create air pressure when the user exhales, keeping the upper airway from collapsing.

Snoring and sleep apnea: Obstructive sleep apnea causes the airways to collapse during sleep, leading to pauses in breathing. It often goes hand-in-hand with snoring. Positioning yourself on your side or stomach can help the airways stay open to reduce snoring and alleviate mild apnea, Salas says.

For mild sleep apnea, non-CPAP options include lifestyle changes (weight loss and exercise) and fitted mouthpieces that adjust the lower jaw and keep the tongue from blocking the airway. For moderate to severe sleep apnea, these alternatives are rarely successful.

Anything that could narrow your airway such as obesity, large tonsils, or changes in your hormone levels can increase your risk for obstructive sleep apnea. Central sleep apnea happens when your brain does not send the signals needed to breathe.

Researchers suspect sleep apnea causes abnormal heart rhythms, which lead to sudden cardiac death, for a number of reasons. “Sleep apnea may lower oxygen levels, activate the fight-or-flight response and change pressure in the chest when the upper airway closes, stressing the heart mechanically,” he explains.

How can I improve my breathing for sleep apnea? ›

Elevate the head of your bed by four to six inches, or elevate your body from the waist up by using a foam wedge or special cervical pillow. Open your nasal passages at night by using a nasal dilator, saline spray, breathing strips, or a nasal irrigation system (neti pot). Quit smoking.

Sudden drops in blood oxygen levels that occur during central sleep apnea can adversely affect heart health. If there's underlying heart disease, these repeated multiple episodes of low blood oxygen — known as hypoxia or hypoxemia — worsen prognosis and increase the risk of irregular heart rhythms.

“A shortage of oxygen circulating throughout the body at night because of sleep apnea can lead to decreased oxygen and blood flow to the optic nerve,” says Sleep Better Austin's dental sleep expert Dr. Max Kerr. “This can cause the eye to degenerate over time.”

Everyone's oxygen levels in the blood are lower during sleep, due to a mildly reduced level of breathing. Also, some alveoli drop out of use during sleep. If your waking oxygen saturation is greater than about 94 percent on room air, it is unlikely that your saturation during sleep will fall below 88 percent.

As long as you have sleep apnea, you will continue to need to use CPAP therapy. That being said, you can discontinue the use of your CPAP machine if your sleep apnea becomes cured or enters remission.

A CPAP machine's cost can range anywhere from $500 to $1,000 or more, with prices generally rising for CPAP machines with more advanced features. Most CPAP machines fall in the $500 to $800 range, however. Bilevel positive airway pressure (BiPAP or BPAP) machines are more complex and tend to cost more as a result.

How much does a sleep apnea implant device cost? According to a 2020 review article, the procedure costs about $30,000. Your health insurance provider may cover some or all of the costs. With regular use, the battery of the device will last about 11 years .

Your Sleep Position

Sleeping on your back can make your sleep apnea worse— this is because your tongue can fall back towards your throat and press against your airway. Any extra weight or pressure, such as body fat, around your airway can block it while you're on your back also. Instead, try sleeping on your side.

Back Sleeping

However, it is the worst sleeping position for individuals with sleep apnea. It allows gravity to pull the soft tissues in the throat downward, which increases the chances that they will collapse during sleep and lead to airway blockages. It can also make snoring much worse.

Is sleeping in a recliner good for sleep apnea? ›

Easier Breathing

Different sleep-related breathing problems can be improved by switching sleep positions. A reclining sleep position has been found to relieve the symptoms of: Sleep apnea: leaning your head back will avoid the tongue falling back and blocking the windpipe.

Bananas. Although bananas are a great source of fiber and potassium, if you have sleep apnea, they're not the best snack choice. They increase mucus production in your mouth and throat, which can make your breathing problems associated with sleep apnea even worse.

Several studies have shown an association between sleep apnea and problems like type 2 diabetes , strokes , heart attacks and even a shortened lifespan, says Jun.

Oxygen therapy is sometimes used to treat obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), due to a condition called hypoxemia that can result from overnight interruptions in breathing.

You may feel uncomfortable because of the sensors and other measuring devices attached to your body. However, nearly everyone eventually falls asleep during a sleep study. Even if you get less sleep than you normally do at home, a sleep study only requires two hours of sleep.

People who have sleep apnea can wake up 15 to 25 times an hour during sleep – without knowing it. The condition causes them to awaken for only a few seconds, but leaves the sufferer feeling exhausted, even after a full night's rest.

Do not have any caffeine in the afternoon or evening before an overnight sleep study. This includes coffee, tea, cola, and chocolate. Also avoid drinking any alcohol.

Daytime hypoxemia has been reported to develop in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

A meta-analysis suggests that CPAP treatment reduces blood pressure levels to a clinically meaningful degree,¹³ but whether this positive effect is more pronounced in patients with resistant hypertension is unclear because studies on this issue are scarce and based on single-center approaches.

What kind of heart damage does sleep apnea cause? ›

If you've ever awakened yourself with a sudden snore — or if your partner nudges you awake to get you to turn over — it's possible you could be affected by sleep apnea, which is associated with high blood pressure, arrhythmia, stroke and heart failure.

Sleep apnoea is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular mortality and all-cause sudden death, with a marginally significant dose–response relationship, where those with severe sleep apnoea are at the highest risk of mortality.

A resting heart rate that is too low (less than 50 beats per minute), or one that is 100 or higher, could be a sign of trouble and should prompt a call to your doctor.

People with interrupted sleep because of sleep apnea -- when breathing stops and starts throughout the night -- often have high total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides in their blood, and low levels of HDL cholesterol. People with sleep apnea tend to be overweight, too, which may lead to high cholesterol.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) does not recognize sleep apnea as a disability. However, if you suffer from severe enough sleep apnea, you may meet eligibility standards with the other symptoms resulting from your sleep apnea.

Obstructive sleep apnea, a form of sleep-disordered breathing, is associated with multiple major stroke risk factors but is also an independent risk factor for stroke. In addition, untreated sleep apnea is associated with poor functional outcome after stroke.

These breathing pauses can prevent your body from supplying enough oxygen to the brain. In severe cases this lack of oxygen can lead to brain damage. Signs of this damage include memory problems, difficulty concentrating, and moodiness.

From dark circles and bags under the eye to floppy eyelids, sleep apnea not only has major effects on one's health but their appearance.

Those with sleep apnea are more likely to have dry eyes caused by ocular irritation, abnormal tear break-up time, and an increased upper and lower lid laxity.

'Look at foods rich in iron and nitrates'

"Foods that are rich in iron and nitrates are the key to increasing oxygen supply throughout your body.So, beetroot, leafy vegetables, pomegranate, garlic, cabbage, cauliflower, sprouts, meat, nuts and seeds help.

What does low oxygen feel like? ›

When your blood oxygen falls below a certain level, you might experience shortness of breath, headache, and confusion or restlessness. Common causes of hypoxemia include: Anemia. ARDS (Acute respiratory distress syndrome)

Pulmonary effects can present as early as within 24 hours of breathing pure oxygen. Symptoms include pleuritic chest pain, substernal heaviness, coughing, and dyspnea secondary to tracheobronchitis and absorptive atelectasis which can lead to pulmonary edema.

They quit for a variety of reasons, but mostly because the device can be cumbersome and uncomfortable. Sometimes, they quit because of confusing or stringent health insurance restrictions. But the health effects of untreated sleep apnea can be serious. People struggle with anxiety, tiredness and low productivity.

Medicare and private insurance companies require patients to use their CPAP very consistently — often at least four hours every night and for 70% of nights each month.

The Biggest Issue: Compliance

The way a CPAP works is to provide a continuous flow of air pressure to help open up blockages in your airway. These blockages are what cause sleep apnea and the large number of long term, serious side effects that can come with it.

The Inspire upper airway stimulation system consists of a small impulse generator implanted beneath the clavicle, a tunneled breathing sensing lead placed between the external and intercostal muscles, and a tunneled stimulation lead attached to the branch of the hypoglossal nerve that produces tongue protrusion.

How much does a sleep apnea implant device cost? According to a 2020 review article, the procedure costs about $30,000. Your health insurance provider may cover some or all of the costs. With regular use, the battery of the device will last about 11 years .

You can expect to see a total bill of around $30,000 to $40,000 for both the surgery and device cost, but that's before your insurance kicks in. I can't say exactly how much you'll end up paying -- it depends heavily on your insurance plan and deductible.

For example, Inspire therapy is not intended for patients with a complete concentric collapse at the level of the soft palate, or those in whom central and mixed apneas make up 25% or more of their apnea-hypopnea index. Patients who require MRI should discuss Inspire therapy with their doctor.

Can you have sleep apnea and not need a CPAP? ›

While all people with mild OSA may not need to be treated with CPAP, there are patients who can greatly benefit from it.

Although CPAP is designed to reduce your AHI, it may not completely eliminate apneas. You should also keep in mind that your AHI is a measure of how many apneas and hypopneas you experience each hour – meaning if you were to take a half-hour nap with an AHI of 4, you've actually only experienced 2 apneas.

These breathing pauses can prevent your body from supplying enough oxygen to the brain. In severe cases this lack of oxygen can lead to brain damage. Signs of this damage include memory problems, difficulty concentrating, and moodiness.