Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) is a sleep disordered breathing condition that can literally cause people to stop breathing while they are sleeping.  Apnea is a Greek word that translates to “without breath”; when asleep the muscles in the throat, primarily the tongue, will loosen and collapse.  This collapse therefore causes an obstruction in the airway to limits or completely blocks breathing.  When the airway fully closes this is to be considered an “apnea event”.   The snoring associated from this condition, while very annoying is not anywhere near as alarming as the toll sleep apnea can take on one’s overall health if left untreated. 

There are four stages to the apnea event.  First the airway will close. Second an effort will be made to breathe unsuccessfully.  Next, the oxygen levels in the blood will significantly drop.  Then finally when the body’s oxygen levels are low enough the brain sends an emergency signal to the body to wake up and breathe.  The partner of someone with apnea will notice this final stage as the sufferer wakes up gasping for breath.  
These low oxygen levels also coincide with high carbon dioxide levels; when left untreated for long period of time this can have serious negative effects on the body’s major organ systems such as the brain and heart. 
The heart takes a beating from the low oxygen levels.  The tremendous amount of pressure placed on the heart to maintain blood circulation without the proper amount of oxygen can lead to many heart complications.  The American Heart Association (AHA) has likened leaving sleep apnea untreated to that of smoking cigarettes! 

Extreme daytime sleepiness is another very common and dangerous problem for people suffering with sleep apnea.  The quality of sleep one gets when suffering with apnea is very poor; this leads to the sufferer feeling low on energy and very unmotivated.  Each and every year thousands upon thousands of car accidents are a result of someone falling asleep at the wheel.  With an estimated 10 million Americans currently left undiagnosed how many lives could have possibly been saved?  

Sleep apnea is very serious, not only can it wreak havoc in your personal life with the loud snoring but it literally can kill you in many ways.  Finding sleep apnea treatment should be a top priority.  Imagine no longer sleeping on the couch? Imagine feeling energetic and productive at work?  Imagine no longer fearing to drive your car because you can barely keep your eyes open? Sleep Apnea Treatment
Through oral appliance therapy Dr. Romriell can help his patients get quality sleep and stop snoring.  This appliance is much like a mouthpiece and is a very non-invasive treatment method.  If you or anybody you know is suffering with chronic snoring or sleep apnea than contact Dr. Romriell today.