How do patients in Beverly Hills decide whether or not they need a sleep study to diagnose obstructive sleep apnea? Beverly Hills dental sleep medicine dentist Dr. David Frey can help them decide.
Most people who have sleep apnea have some or all of the following symptoms:
- Loud snoring. This is not your garden variety quiet droning – think about loud snoring that wakes your bed partner and maybe sends you to sleep on the couch.
- Snorting or gasping during sleep. You probably won’t remember this happening but your bed partner surely will. These sounds follow the periods in which sleep apnea sufferers stop breathing.
- Extreme daytime sleepiness. This type of sleepiness differs from just feeling tired or having no energy. It will feel like all you want to do is take a nap and you may find yourself dropping off to sleep at inopportune moments like in movies, meeting or even while driving.
- Waking up with a headache. The stress of low oxygen levels throughout the night cause problems throughout the body and raise blood pressure. You may also be clenching your jaw during sleep (common in patients with sleep apnea) which can lead to headaches.
- Getting up during the night to go to the bathroom. When your breathing is disrupted it puts pressure on the heart. This affects a hormone that controls the kidneys leading to nocturia. This symptom is more common in extreme cases.
Many obstructive sleep apnea patients seek diagnosis and treatment because their bed partner has witnessed them stop breathing during the night or complains about the loud snoring. If this sounds like you please don’t delay seeking treatment. Beverly Hills sleep apnea dentist Dr. David Frey Sleep apnea can comfortably treat sleep apnea using an oral appliance without the need for CPAP. Contact us at 310-276-4537 today today to find out more and to schedule your consultation.
