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Big words like polysomnogram are intimidating but are really quite simple when you know what they mean. A polysomnogram is an overnight sleep study that is administered to test for various different sleep disorders. It is a common procedure that is used to diagnose sleep apnea.

More specifically, a polysomnogram monitors the biophysiological changes your body undergoes during sleep. This includes, but isn't limited to:

• Brain waves
• Heart activity
• Breathing
• Eye activity
• Leg movements

This comprehensive list of bodily activities is closely monitored in order to paint a complete picture as to what your body experiences when you are asleep. An abnormality in any of these activities can combine to contribute to various sleep disorders, including sleep apnea.

A polysomnogram is usually performed at a hospital or a sleep center. You will go to the sleep center or hospital at night and your sleep will be monitored during your normal bed time. A series of sensors and wires will gently be placed on your skin while you sleep to monitor your body's activity during your slumber. A doctor will come in to reattach sensors if they become dislodged during sleep. The sensors will also have to be removed if you need to go to the bathroom during the middle of the night.

After your sleep study, Dr. Shapira will analyze the results and will determine what variety of sleep disorder that you may have. It can take up to two weeks for you to receive the results of your sleep study.

If Dr. Shapira determines that you have sleep apnea, it is important to get started on a treatment plan as soon as possible. Sleep apnea is a very serious medical condition.

If you suffer from sleep apnea and live in the Gurnee, IL area, please contact sleep dentist Dr. Ira Shapira today.

Many of you may have heard of sleep apnea or the acronym OSA (obstructive sleep apnea) but may be a bit confused as to what this medical condition actually is; many people have no idea how dangerous it is.

Simply put, sleep apnea is a serious and potentially life-threatening disorder characterized by interrupted sleep. Some people who suffer with sleep apnea may actually stop breathing hundreds of times a night for several seconds each time. Sleep apnea can result in serious symptoms and conditions including but not limited to:

• Memory problems
• Difficulty concentrating
• Fatigue
• Dry mouth
• Sore throat
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Weight gain
• Diabetes
• Heart problems
• Stroke
• Headaches
• Intellectual deterioration
• High blood pressure
• Impotence
• Decreased libido
• Choking

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a very common, but serious, medical condition that affects millions of Americans. OSA is characterized by intermittent periods of breathing cessation while you sleep. Some sleep apneics stop breathing up to several hundred times a night. Snoring is often associated with sleep apnea. Apnea actually comes from the Greek and means “without breath.”

OSA is caused by a blockage of your airway; the blockage typically occurs when the soft tissue in the back of your throat collapses and closes while you sleep. In another type of sleep apena, central sleep apnea (CSA), the airway is not fully blocked but the brain fails to signal your muscles to breathe. There is also mixed sleep apnea, which, as its name implies, is a combination of OSA and CSA. It is estimated that 12 million Americans have some form of sleep apnea. Like many diseases and conditions, family members are affected by the condition; in this case, your partner will certainly be affected by your interrupted sleep and may even hear you gasping for air in the middle of the night. This can be quite scary because it sounds like you’re suffocating.

Some of the risk factors for sleep apnea are:

• Being male
• Being overweight
• Being over the age of forty

However, sleep apnea can affect females, those who are not overweight and can even affect children. Many cases of sleep apnea go undiagnosed and, therefore, also go untreated. If left untreated, sleep apnea can cause a whole host of medical problems including these signs and symptoms of sleep apnea:

• Heart disease
• Diabetes
• Stroke
• Depression
• Anxiety
• High blood pressure
• Fatigue
• Concentration problems
• Memory problems

If you snore and stop breathing sometimes up to hundreds of times a night, you may suffer from a very common, though serious medical condition known as Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). The word "apnea"is Greek and literally means "without breath."In addition to OSA, there is also Central Sleep Apnea (CSA), in which the airway is not blocked, but the brain actually fails to signal your muscles to breathe. The third type of sleep apnea is mixed sleep apnea, which, as its name implies, is a combination of OSA and CSA.

Regardless of which type you have the severity of the apnea, you must have this condition treated as it can lead to a whole host of medical problems including these sleep apnea signs and symptoms:

• Memory problems
• Fatigue
• Sore throat
• Gastric reflux
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Mood swings
• Weight gain

For the past eight years, researchers at Johns Hopkins University have studied the lives and sleep patterns of men and women between the ages of 40 and 70 years old. The study showed that about one-third of the people studied suffered from some form of sleep apnea. 8 percent of men and 3 percent of women in the study suffered from severe sleep apnea.

Sleep apnea occurs when the muscles in the throat become over-relaxed during sleep, closing the passageway and preventing the lungs from receiving the oxygen they need. When this happens, the brain wakes from sleep temporarily to open the passageway and give the body the air it needs.

For people with severe sleep apnea, or Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), the brain can wake the body more than 30 times in just an hour. Obstructive Sleep Apnea prevents the brain from staying in deep, REM sleep, which allows it to rejuvenate and rest. The dangers of sleep apnea include high blood pressure, depression, and heart attack.

The results of the sleep research concluded that men aged 40 to 70-years-old who suffer from severe sleep apnea are twice as likely to die early than men who do not suffer from a sleep disorder.

To make sure you are not at risk of suffering an early death, or putting your body at risk for serious health side effects, please contact Gurnee, Illinois sleep dentist, Dr. Ira Shapira to schedule a sleep evaluation today.

In general, the people who are at most at risk for sleep apnea are older individuals and people who are severely overweight. Sleep apnea can prevent the body and brain from getting the deep, restful sleep required by everyone to perform at their peak. For adolescents suffering from Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), academic studies can be seriously affected.

When someone is suffering the OSA, the soft tissues in the throat can temporarily close during sleep. The brain must then wake the body and open the throat so oxygen can reach the lungs. This process can occur hundreds of times in a single night, resulting in many different physical and mental side effects:

• Daytime Exhaustion
• Depression
• High Blood Pressure
• Memory Loss
• Weight Gain
• Headaches

We've all heard about different foods and drinks affecting the way we sleep at night and the amount you snore or not. Unfortunately, if you are suffering from sleep apnea, simply changing the foods you eat and liquids you drink might not prevent you from snoring.

Snoring at night can seriously affect the way you and even your sleeping partner sleep at night. Depending on how severe your snoring is it may be a symptom of sleep apnea, a sleeping disorder that can impact many other aspects of your life. Sleep dentists like Dr. Ira Shapira in Gurnee, Illinois, help people diagnose their sleep apnea when there is something more serious involved.

For some people, snoring is simply a disturbance that could be caused by many different factors. Drinking alcohol, eating dairy products, or eating a large meal before going to sleep might make this type of snoring worse.

Millions of other people who snore are actually suffering from a much more dangerous condition called Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). When someone has OSA, the passageways in their throat temporarily close and prevent oxygen from reaching the lungs. To correct this problem, the brain wakes you from sleep so the body can open the passageway.

With the body and brain constantly waking up throughout the night, the body can't get the deep, restful sleep it needs to perform correctly and it can suffer from a few different dangers of sleep apnea.

If you or your sleeping partner is suffering from snoring a night and changing diet habits haven't helped, sleep apnea might be causing the sleep problems. To find out if you or one of your loved ones is suffering from sleep apnea, please contact Dr. Ira Shapira in Gurnee, Illinois to schedule a professional sleep analysis.

Have you recently had a baby and are now trying to lose some of weight you gained during pregnancy? A new study performed by Kaiser Permanente has shown that a good night’s sleep is just as important as diet and exercise for women trying to lose those difficult extra pounds after giving birth.

Unfortunately for many women, Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) prevents them from getting the deep, restful sleep they need to successfully lose the extra weight. Sleep dentists like Dr. Ira Shapira in Gurnee, Illinois can help women diagnose and treat their sleep apnea, but they need to schedule a sleep evaluation first.

Sleep apnea is a sleeping disorder that occurs when the soft tissues in the throat close temporarily during sleep, preventing the lungs from getting the air they need. When this happens, the brain wakes and forces the body to open the airway, giving you the necessary oxygen.

When the body is constantly waking up to allow you to receive oxygen, you don't get the rest you need and the body doesn’t function correctly. The result is an increased chance of high blood pressure, weight gain, and exhaustion among other sleep apnea dangers.

If you believe that sleep apnea is preventing you or your sleep partner from losing the post-pregnancy weight they want, please contact experienced Gurnee, Illinois sleep dentist, Dr. Ira Shapira to schedule a sleep evaluation.

For very overweight people suffering from sleep apnea, the prospect of bariatric surgery seems like the best solution. Unfortunately, a new study from The American Journal of Medicine shows that weight loss surgery may not help people suffering from Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA).

Obstructive Sleep Apnea is a sleep disorder that millions of people all over the country suffer from. The reason the dangers of sleep apnea are so severe is because it prevents the brain from getting the deep, rejuvenating sleep it needs to function properly.

The people most at risk for suffering from Obstructive Sleep Apnea are overweight and older individuals. Obstructive Sleep Apnea occurs when the soft throat tissues close up during sleep, preventing the oxygen from reaching the lungs. The brain temporarily awakes the body over and over throughout the night so you can breathe.

In the past, very overweight people thought that by correcting their weight problems with bariatric surgery, their sleep problems would also be eliminated. The new study now shows that weight loss surgery will help people lose large amounts of weight and lessen the number of sleep apnea episodes during the night, but it won't necessarily cure Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

If you believe that you or a loved one is suffering from Obstructive Sleep Apnea, please contact Gurnee, Illinois sleep dentist, Dr. Ira Shapira today to schedule a professional sleep evaluation.

We have all heard family members, friends, and sleeping partners snore away at night, but for the most part men snore a bit more than women. One of the reasons experienced sleep dentists and scientists believe men snore more than women is testosterone.

Men are exposed to testosterone for their entire lives and as a result, their throats and necks are more developed than women. This means men's chances of snoring and developing sleep disorders like Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) is more likely than women.

Snoring occurs when the soft tissues of the throat close during sleep; when air moves past these tissues into the lungs, creates a vibrating sound, commonly referred to as snoring. Snoring is also a common sleep apnea symptom.

Sleep is one of the most vital parts of your life because it allows your body and mind to rejuvenate. When you suffer from sleep apnea, your body and brain are not allowed to reach the deep, necessary sleep you need. Sleep apnea temporarily closes your airways, preventing the lungs from receiving oxygen. As a result, the brain momentarily wakes the body so you can get the needed oxygen.

Sleep apnea can be dangerous because the body loses its ability to repair itself, stressing it over time. Some of the biggest dangers of sleep apnea include a higher risk of blood clots, obesity, and diabetes.

If you believe that you, your husband, or any other male in your family is suffering from serious snoring or sleep apnea, please contact Gurnee, Illinois sleep dentist, Dr. Ira Shapira to schedule your sleep evaluation.

Sleep apnea can have a huge affect on the health of adults, but when the dangers of sleep apnea are directed at children, the results can be devastating. Overweight children are still developing, and sleep apnea can stress their bodies, putting them at an even greater risk of sleep apnea symptoms.

According to a new study, children who are overweight and wet the bed may be suffering from obstructive sleep apnea. After performing sleep studies on control and sleep apnea suffering children, the study showed that both bedwetting and being overweight can be associated with sleep apnea but the two not associated with each other.

The data from the study showed that there is a significant association between overweight children, bedwetting, and obstructive sleep apnea. Scientists are unsure of why this association exists, but they suggest doctors examine the possibility of children suffering from obstructive sleep apnea if an overweight child is also suffering from bedwetting; especially if they are also suffering from other sleep apnea symptoms.

Researchers claim that a child who suffers from bedwetting is five times more likely to have sleep apnea. While unrelated, a child who suffers from being overweight is four times more likely to have obstructive sleep apnea.

If you live in the Illinois area and you suspect that your child or other family member is suffering from sleep apnea, please contact Dr. Ira Shapira, Gurnee, Illinois sleep dentist to schedule a professional sleep apnea examination.

According to a new research study, almost 1 in 10 people suffering from obstructive sleep apnea also suffer from some form of parasomnia. While obstructive sleep apnea may not cause parasomnia, it can make the condition worse if you are already predisposed to it. An experienced sleep dentist can help people determine if they are suffering from either parasomnia or sleep apnea.

Parasomnia is a sleeping condition many people suffer from that includes a few different symptoms like sleepwalking, sleep paralysis, acting-out dreams, hallucinations, and even eating or driving.

New research looked at the sleep records of 537 sleep patients and found that 51 patients who suffered from sleep apnea also suffered from one or more symptoms of parasomnia. This means that about 10 percent of sleep apnea sufferers may also be suffering from the symptoms of parasomnia. Parasomnia can be very dangerous, sleepwalking or driving while asleep can injure you or the people around you.

One of the reasons sleep apnea can put people more at risk for parasomnia is because the brain becomes active the going through a sleep apnea episode. During one of these episodes, the soft tissue in the throat closes and the body is momentarily deprived of oxygen; the brain is then aroused so that you can breathe again.

This brain arousal can cause the symptoms of parasomnia. Sleep apnea can have other hazardous affects on your health like an increased risk of heart attack, high blood pressure, and stroke. Some of the symptoms of sleep apnea include being tired during the day, snoring, depression, and weight gain.

If you believe that you or your sleeping partner is suffering from sleep apnea or parasomnia, there are solutions available to you. To put an end to your sleep problems, please contact Dr. Ira Shapira, Gurnee, Illinois sleep dentist today.

Right now, there are more than 24 million people on the planet suffering from type 2 diabetes. In a recent study, 306 obese type 2 diabetes patients were studied while they slept. Staggeringly, 87% of the patients in the study were suffering from obstructive sleep apnea but had never been diagnosed for the sleep disorder.

A healthy night's sleep is one of the most important aspects of staying healthy. For people already dealing with being overweight and having other health problems, suffering from sleep apnea can make matters even worse. One of the ways obese or overweight people can make sure they don't have obstructive sleep apnea is by having a sleep study performed by an experienced sleep apnea dentist.

Type 2 diabetes can increase an individual's risk of heart disease, nerve damage, blindness, and kidney damage. What's worse is that sleep apnea and obesity also affect a person's overall health in dangerous ways. Some of the dangers of sleep apnea include increased risk of heart attack or stroke, as well as high blood pressure.

Obstructive sleep apnea develops in overweight and obese people because the muscles and soft tissues in the throat weaken over time with the stress of excess body mass. This means that as you sleep, the soft tissues in the throat can close, stopping air from reaching your lungs. When this happens, the body wakes up momentarily to clear the airway, preventing you from getting the deep, restorative sleep you need.

If you are feeling drowsy or are suffering from other sleep apnea symptoms, or if you believe your partner has sleep apnea, it may be time to schedule a sleep study. Please contact an experienced sleep dentist like Dr. Ira Shapira in Gurnee, Illinois who can help you diagnose and treat your obstructive sleep apnea.

A new study released information also showing that snoring while pregnant can lead to future health issues between both the mother and the baby. By having a sleep apnea evaluation performed by Dr. Ira Shapira in Gurnee Illinois, you can make sure you put a stop to your snoring and sleep apnea so you and your baby get the sleep you need.

The study was performed on 189 healthy women who were observed and surveyed both early in their pregnancy, when they enrolled, and in their third trimester. The results showed that women who snore at least 3 nights per week had 14.3% chance of developing gestational diabetes. Women who did not snore this often only had a 3% chance of developing the disease.

Gestational diabetes is a form of diabetes that develops in 1% to 3% of pregnant women, and it affects their ability to process sugar. The results of having gestational diabetes include an increased risk of complications and health problems with the baby at birth.

Doctors believe that pregnant women develop serious snoring problems and sleep apnea because the increased weight gained by the pregnant body can lead to airway resistance. An experienced sleep dentist can help determine what the best sleep apnea treatment is for you.

If you or your sleep partner is pregnant and snoring at least 3 times per week, you should contact sleep apnea dentist Dr. Ira Shapira in Gurnee, Illinois to schedule a sleep evaluation.

Trucking companies have a notoriously high number of overweight people driving trucks, and with more people becoming aware of the dangers of sleep apnea, companies are beginning to screen drivers for sleep apnea.

Since sleep apnea develops in seriously overweight people, trucking companies are beginning to treat drivers that may be suffering from the sleep problem. People who suffer from sleep apnea often suffer from sleep apnea symptoms like being tired during the day and not being able to make it through the day without a nap.

This can be dangerous for people whose occupation involves driving a multi-ton commercial truck. Drivers are already regulated, and are not supposed to drive more than 11 hours without a 10 hour break, but this might not be enough for victims of sleep apnea.

Trucking companies believe that by identifying drivers with sleep apnea and treating the problem, they may be able to cut down on truck accidents. If a driver is falling asleep at the wheel because they are suffering from sleep apnea at night, it poses a serious danger on the road.

If you would like to find out if you or your sleeping partner is suffering from sleep apnea, please contact Dr. Ira Shapira in Gurnee Illinois to schedule a complete sleep apnea evaluation.

With the rise of sleep medicines in the United States, more and more people are discovering they are suffering from sleep apnea. When people come into the doctor and describe why they need sleep medicines, doctors often discover either they or their sleeping partner is suffering from obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

With sleeping pills and other medicines increasing in popularity, patients have been coming to doctors describing a few different reasons as to why they need to get better rest at night. Some people want to sleep through a sleeping partner's loud snoring; other people feel like they wake up throughout the night for no reason. Both of these are common sleep apnea symptoms.

Sleep apnea occurs very often in older and obese people when the muscles in the throat become weak and are unable to keep the airways open. The result of this obstruction is loud snoring that can be a true nightmare for sleeping partners. In addition to snoring, the body can also force you awake because it is in need of air. When you wake up multiple times a night simply for your body to get oxygen, it can have a serious effect on other aspects of your life.

Sleep apnea dangers include an increased risk of heart attack and stroke, obesity, and high blood pressure. If you're feeling tired during the day, or if you're hearing from your sleep partner that you snore all night, it may be time to discover if you have sleep apnea.

The best way to determine if you have sleep apnea is to schedule a full sleep apnea evaluation with Dr. Ira Shapira, Gurnee, Illinois dentist.

One of the biggest signs of suffering from sleep apnea is feeling tired in the middle of the day. If you have sleep apnea, you may be waking up numerous times throughout the night, depriving you of the sleep you need. At the moment, it’s estimated that over a quarter of the American population is not getting the sleep they need.

For most adults, seven to nine hours of sleep per night is plenty of time for the body to relax and repair itself. Unfortunately, obstructive sleep apnea can deprive you of this important rest and make you feel tired throughout the day. Some of the most common sleep apnea health problems include:

• Obesity
  
• Increased Risk of Stroke
  
• High Blood Pressure
  
• Impotence
  
• Weight Gain
  

A recent study has now shown that length and quality of sleep is linked directly to a person’s Body Mass Index (BMI). The study found that on average, people sleeping less than normal had a BMI index about 4 points higher than a “normal” sleeper.

In addition to these findings, the study also found that “short sleepers” have a harder time falling asleep in general. Despite sleeping less, short sleepers tended to also be about 25% more active than long sleepers during the day and spent almost 1,000 more calories during the day.

This is interesting because it shows that a long, restful night sleep can be even more beneficial than we once thought. People who sleep longer and more soundly use fewer calories but tend to have a lower BMI.

People suffering from sleep apnea can wake up many times during the night because their body needs oxygen. These countless repetitions of waking up momentarily and going back to sleep can cause many other Sleep Apnea Dangers in addition to a higher BMI.

If you or your spouse is suffering from snoring or sleep apnea and are ready to correct the problem, please contact Gurnee, Illinois sleep apnea dentist, Dr. Ira Shapira, to find out the best way to treat your obstructive sleep apnea.

Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) has been the main treatment modality for patients suffering with the very dangerous condition known as sleep apnea. The CPAP machine works by using pressure to send air flowing through the nasal passages, keeping the throat from collapsing during sleep-the main reason why individuals with sleep apnea stop breathing periodically throughout the night. CPAP, however, is uncomfortable and many people do not use CPAP because of the inconvenience and bulkiness of the apparatus.

Sleep apnea must be treated; if it is not, it can lead to many serious medical problems including:

• Fatigue
• Depression
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• Sore throat
• Dry mouth
• Excessive daytime drowsiness
• Poor concentration
• Short-term memory problems
• Anxiety
• Mood swings
• Impotence
• Cognitive deterioration

• CPAP: delivers one continuous air pressure
• APAP: adjusts to your need for oxygen by starting out at low pressure, senses raising the pressure during a sleep apnea event
• BiPAP: uses a higher pressure when you inhale and lower pressure when you exhale

Snoring occurs when the air passages at the back of the mouth and nose do not have a free flow of air. Obstruction of the airways usually occurs when the soft tissues in that area collapse during sleep, causing the tongue to meet briefly with the soft palate (top part of your mouth in the back) and the uvula (the hanging bell-shaped tissue in the back of your throat). The vibrations are what cause the actual sound of snoring.

Snorers may also suffer from:

• Mouth soreness
  
• Permanent changes or damage to the jaw, teeth, or mouth
  
• Build up of saliva
  
• Nausea
  

• Depression
  
• Anxiety
  
• High blood pressure
  
• Fatigue
  
• Mood swings
  
• Short-term memory problems
  
• Memory problems
  
• Attention problems
  
• Dry mouth
  
• Diabetes
  
• Sore throat
  

• Use of dental appliances
  
• Behavior modification
  
• Medication
  
• Surgery
  

• Structural problems in the airway that cause interrupted breathing during sleep
  
• Throat muscles and tongue relax during sleep blocking the airway
  
• Narrowing of the airway often occurs in obese individuals due to the excess tissue in the throat and neck areas
  

• Oral appliances
  
• Behavioral changes
  
• Medication
  
• Surgery
  

The palate is the roof of the mouth. The front of the palate is the hard palate, and behind it is the soft palate, which extends back to the uvula (the fleshy, dangling protuberance at the back of the mouth. Using sleep videofluoroscopy to measure anatomical changes and polysomnography to identify apnea/hypoxia events, researchers found that the soft palate behaved very differently in sleep apnea sufferers than it did in simple snorers. Sleep apnea sufferers were more likely to see the soft palate expand backward during sleep. And this expansion was linked to instances of apnea and hypoxia.

The distinction between simple snorers and obstructive sleep apnea sufferers is a crucial part of delivering the right solution for those with sleep disordered breathing. Simple snoring is just a nuisance, but the dangers of sleep apnea make it a deadly condition that can dramatically reduce a person's life expectancy.

If you need help getting the best solution for your sleep apnea, schedule a sleep apnea consultation at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois today.

Now, as part of its program to ensure that all sleep apnea sufferers over the age of 65 receive treatment for this serious condition that can lead to premature death, Medicare has decided to fund home sleep apnea tests, and prescriptions for sleep apnea treatments (including CPAP and oral appliance therapy) based on those home tests. This makes Medicare the first insurer to back diagnosis of sleep apnea using home test methods.

The use of home tests to diagnose sleep apnea is controversial among sleep scientists. Although some do not believe they are as accurate as lab-based tests, others argue that home sleep data, taken over a longer period of time under normal sleeping conditions, are actually more accurate. And recent research also supports the repeatability of home sleep apnea tests, which lends considerable credibility to their results.

Sleep apnea poses a serious health threat partly because it so often goes undiagnosed and untreated, we hope that this change will help people get the diagnosis and treatment necessary to avoid the dangers of sleep apnea. Home sleep studies come at a considerable cost saving to patients, costing about $200 with a $35 copay for Medicare, as opposed to a $1000 procedure with a $150 copay for laboratory sleep study. With reduced cost, people are more likely to get diagnosed. In addition, home sleep tests allow patients to be diagnosed more quickly than at sleep centers, which may have long waiting lists for sleep studies. We can only hope that more insurers will pick up this policy.

If you have been diagnosed with sleep apnea, we can help you get the best treatment for you. To learn more about your treatment options, schedule a sleep apnea treatment consultation at the Snoring & Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois today.

The doctor first pointed out, as we have discussed, that weight gain contributed to obstructive sleep apnea by placing additional weight on the airway during sleep. However, he also noted that being overweight affects the nerve signals from the brain to the airway. The result is that the muscles in the airway lose tone and become flaccid, which makes them less able to keep the airway open, especially when relaxed during sleep. Interestingly, no one knows why the signals change. Some point to the hormone leptin (you can read more about the correlation between sleep apnea and leptin levels in this blog), saying that too much leptin could affect breathing control.

Because of this twofold contribution of being overweight to sleep apnea, it certainly seems that weight loss as part of a comprehensive program of behavioral therapy is a good first step. At the very least, losing weight will probably reduce the volume and frequency of snoring, and it may reduce severe sleep apnea to a moderate level that can be controlled with oral appliance therapy as opposed to the less convenient CPAP.

If you would like to learn more about the best approaches for tackling your sleep apnea, schedule a sleep apnea consultation at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois.

Specifically, the researchers used Doppler ultrasound to measure blood flow velocity in the brain and compared it with blood pressure and CO₂ saturation. The study shows that patients with obstructive sleep apnea had a lower velocity of blood flow in their brains at all times. In addition, the brains of sleep apnea sufferers seem slower to recover following changes in blood pressure. However, the brains of sleep apnea sufferers did seem to respond adequately to increases in CO₂ saturation.

Researchers speculate that lower blood velocity and compensatory mechanisms in sleep apnea sufferers may make them more susceptible to ischemic stroke. Ischemic stroke is caused by blood clots that become lodged in the brain, depriving part of the brain of oxygen.

Stroke is just one of the most severe of the risks faced by sleep apnea sufferers. If you have obstructive sleep apnea, oral appliance therapy can reduce the number of apneic events you suffer and dramatically reduce the level of your risk. To learn more, schedule a sleep apnea consultation at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois today.

Weight gain is one of the most common causes of snoring in men, who tend to deposit fat reserves in the throat, leading to snoring and obstructive sleep apnea. It is also rarely a problem for just one partner. Maybe this Valentine's Day it is time to make a commitment to health together and begin dieting and exercising together.

Smoking inflames the nasal and throat tissues. If you or your partner smokes, quitting can really help reduce the amount of snoring.

Allergies have a similar effect as smoking on the tissue of the nose and throat. If you have a high level of allergens in the home, instituting more regular vacuuming, dusting, etc can help. You might also consider changing pillows if one of you is allergic to down, and some people are allergic to certain components of laundry detergents, so switching to a hypoallergenic brand may help.

Alcohol leads to increased relaxation of the throat muscles which contributes to the severity of obstructive sleep apnea. So try to cut down on alcohol consumption, something that is easier as a couple.

If the above behavioral therapy methods do not solve your problem it is important to recognize that there are many risks associated with sleep apnea and seek professional help. Sleep apnea diagnosis followed by CPAP or oral appliance therapy can help you both sleep and ensure your happily ever after is a lot longer.

If your partner is a snorer and this is affecting your relationship, schedule a snoring consultation at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Chicago, Illinois.

According to the study, those with mild, moderate, and severe SDB had a reduction in insulin sensitivity of 26.7, 36.5, and 43.7 %, respectively. In addition, the reductions in insulin sensitivity and the decrease in pancreatic β-cell function were both correlated to reductions in blood-oxygen saturation. And glucose effectiveness was negatively correlated with the frequency of apneic events. Glucose effectiveness is the measure of glucose disposal independent of insulin function, such as through the liver and other methods of filtering it from the bloodstream. This may be an early sign of an effect discussed in another paper published in the same issue, which notes that liver disease in obese patients may be increased by sleep apnea.

By linking SDB to important precursors to type 2 diabetes, the study reaffirms that sleep apnea and snoring are important independent health risks. Although obesity is commonly recognized as a cause of type 2 diabetes, more needs to be done to address the sleep apnea that may be responsible for both obesity and diabetes.

If you suffer from sleep apnea or are a snorer, you may be able to head off type 2 diabetes by receiving treatment. Schedule a snoring and sleep apnea consultation at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois today.

How many more calories did sleep apnea sufferers burn? The disparity between the high level and the low level was 373 calories per night. However, this should not be taken as a recommendation that sufferers should avoid treatment for their sleep apnea in the hope of losing weight. As we have already seen, sleep apnea leads to a poor diet, and the amount of additional energy consumption is roughly equal to the amount of additional calories consumed in fat and protein alone. And it doesn't help dissipate the additional cholesterol consumed. And the dangers of sleep apnea, such as high blood pressure and increased risk of stroke and heart attack, mean leaving the condition untreated is a dangerous thing.

To learn more about the dangers of sleep apnea, schedule a sleep apnea consultation at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center today.

The highest recorded volume of snoring in the subjects was strongly and independently correlated with daytime sleepiness--commonly considered as a symptom of sleep apnea--as measured by the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) in apneic patients, but not in other patients. Interpreting these results is difficult, but researchers concluded that snoring intensity may explain daytime sleepiness that cannot be fully explained by variables measured by polysomnography.

The mechanism is very difficult to imagine, but since the ESS is a subjective measure, perhaps there is a deeper, more cognitive effect of snoring on the quality of sleep. We know that snoring disturbs cosleepers, but perhaps it also disturbs the sleeper himself in a way we cannot appreciate.

Although the study only correlated the effect of snoring for apneics, it is possible that all snorers suffer diminished quality of sleep. To learn more about the benefits of snoring treatment, schedule a snoring consultation at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois.

A recent study published in the International Archives of Medicine showed that not only are the tests reliable, but they may be more reliable than in-lab assessments. The researchers took a small sample size of patients and gave them four tests--two in-lab and two at-home--over a period of six months and compared the results. Polysomnography results were taken and sent to three different accredited sleep laboratories for interpretation while the at-home tests were collected by the patients and scored according to standardized algorithms. According to the researchers, the in-lab tests showed a high degree of variability from test to test when compared to the at-home tests. Whereas at-home tests showed essentially no variability, the second polysomnography seemed biased toward greater apnea-hypopnea and apnea indices.

Although the study, with its small sample size, does not say whether one test is more accurate than the other, it does urge doctors using polysomnography to measure severity of sleep apnea to be aware of the possible bias of the test.

If you have been diagnosed with sleep apnea, we can help. Schedule a sleep apnea consultation at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Center in Gurnee, Illinois today.

Not so sleep dentistry, which is still not a specialty recognized by the American Dental Association. Nonetheless, sleep dentists have been working for decades to help people get a good night's sleep through oral appliances that can stop snoring and remedy obstructive sleep apnea.

If you are a snorer or have been diagnosed with sleep apnea, especially if you have been started on CPAP treatment by a sleep doctor but it is not working for you, schedule a sleep dentistry consultation at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois, today.

About 18 percent of Baby Boomers report that they don’t get enough sleep because their significant other snores or tosses and turns. No wonder so many of them are moving into separate bedrooms. But it doesn’t have to be this way. If you snore or if your loved one snores, you may be able to get relief with oral appliance therapy.

These days, there is enough to worry about with the economy and financial stress, and with everyone getting older, family worries just keep multiplying. Don’t let snoring keep you awake at night. Schedule an oral appliance therapy consultation at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois.

The researchers studied a pair of molecules, known to modulate the body's response to metabolic hormones. They created a mutation in mice which prevented the two hormones, NCoR and HDAC3, from working together. This partnership is known to affect animals' metabolism responses to food, but when they disrupted this partnership, they found a surprising side effect: suddenly the mice were on a different sleep schedule. Suddenly, they had a different circadian rhythm than unaltered mice. They were sleeping less, but their bodies responded more readily to insulin. This means they did not gain as much weight when put on a high-fat diet, and seemed healthy.

Researchers are hopeful that this discovery might someday lead to new therapies in the battle against obesity and diabetes. They warn, however, that the discovery shows sleeping less and greater insulin response may be triggered by the same mutation, not that people who sleep less, or who have disrupted sleep patterns as a result of sleep apnea or snoring, will lose weight. In fact, the evidence suggests the opposite.

If losing weight has been a problem for you, especially if you can't seem to control your diet or appetite, perhaps sleep apnea is a contributing factor. Schedule a sleep apnea treatment consultation at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois, today.

Psychologists say that although it is important for people to get sleep, simply moving into another room can cause irreparable damage to your relationship. Although sleeping in separate rooms might defuse the tension surrounding snoring or RLS-related disturbance to your partner, it also reduces the amount of bonding you do with him or her. Sleeping in the same bed is important for establishing intimacy which is the foundation of a healthy marriage. Although used as a euphemism for sexual relations (also affected by snoring and sleep apnea), intimacy is a combination of psychological and biochemical mechanisms that help couples to feel close to one another.

And simply moving to another room leaves potentially dangerous conditions untreated. Snoring is often just the most audible symptom of obstructive sleep apnea, which can lead to a number of dangerous health effects. If you truly love your husband or wife, you will not abandon them to gasp and suffer alone, but will help them get treatment, using either CPAP or the more comfortable and less invasive oral appliance therapy.

The best solution to a snoring problem is not to run away, but to seek treatment through sleep medicine. To schedule a snoring relief consultation, contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois, today.

Sleep medicine is one area where people can suffer potentially deadly delays as a result of the system. In Saskatchewan, for example, there are very few labs able to diagnose sleep apnea. One lab has a waiting list of over 2000 people, and some of these people have been waiting five years for diagnosis and treatment of sleep apnea. Because of the myriad dangers of sleep apnea, Health Canada guidelines recommend a maximum wait time for sleep apnea diagnosis of two to six months.

A relatively new program in Saskatchewan, though, has given thousands of Canadians an option. Instead of waiting in line for diagnosis at a sleep lab, people who suspect sleep apnea can take home a portable testing kit to determine whether they are likely to be suffering from sleep apnea.

The only problem with the program? Funding. Although it has successfully reduce the waiting lists at the area sleep clinic and brought wait times into the recommended length, the provincial government is unsure whether it wants to continue funding the program. With funding up in the air, it is uncertain whether the program will be cut off despite its early success.

At the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois, we can make sure you receive timely diagnosis and treatment for your sleep apnea. Schedule a sleep apnea consultation today.

In one study of crime victims suffering from PTSD, 90 % of the victims also suffered from respiratory disruption, and half also suffered from obstructive sleep apnea. Other studies have found similar results, and it has been determined that insomnia and daytime sleepiness within a month after the traumatic event are important predictors for the development of PTSD.

With PTSD, as with obesity, it is hard to determine which came first. But sleep apnea saps a person's mental and physical resources for dealing with life events. Since it is impossible to predict who will suffer from PTSD after a traumatic event, all that we can say is that people with sleep disorders are more likely to develop PTSD.

In one case study of a Vietnam Veteran who suffered from both sleep apnea and PTSD, the treatment of sleep apnea led to a significant reduction in PTSD symptoms. The man had frequent waking episodes, often accompanied by choking, and he complained of nightmares and flashbacks to his combat experience. Once the man began CPAP treatment, and his level of REM sleep increased, his PTSD all improved. His doctors attributed this in part to the dramatic reduction of his waking instances during REM sleep and more time spent in REM sleep.

If you or a loved one have suffered a traumatic event and are finding it hard to get back to normal life. If your sleep is disrupted and you fear for your physical and mental health, sleep apnea might be part of the problem, and treatment part of the solution. Schedule a sleep apnea consultation at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois today.

The symptoms of sleep apnea are relatively easy to identify once you know what you're looking for. Snoring, daytime sleepiness, weight gain, impaired cognitive function and focus, can make a very clear pattern pointing in the direction of sleep apnea. But as little as 1 in 5 sleep apnea sufferers actually manifests the discernible symptoms of sleep apnea. Because they are harder to identify and study, the risk these people, with only mild to moderate OSA, face has not been studied in the past. However, this study, conducted by the Oxford Centre for Respiratory Medicine, identifies the significant risk of cardiovascular damage even in very mild cases of OSA.

According to the study's results, people with sleep apnea had blood vessels less able to expand and contract to regulate blood flow, and their arteries were significantly more stiff than non-apneic subjects. Surprisingly, apnea sufferers had higher blood pressure, but not significantly.

Although blood pressure was not determined to be a factor in this study, the cardiovascular symptoms pointed to by the study still represent an increased risk for people with even mild, largely asymptomatic OSA.

If you experience even intermittent hints that you may suffer from sleep apnea, the potential dangers of sleep apnea justify undergoing evaluation to determine the presence or absence of the condition. And if you have only mild OSA, it is more likely that you can receive good results with non-invasive, comfortable oral appliance therapy. Schedule a sleep apnea consultation with the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois, to learn more.

All of the patients in the study had sleep apnea. In looking at the data, researchers also found that people with an RDI > 50, meaning people with more disturbed sleep breathing, consumed a diet that was higher in cholesterol, protein, total fat, and total saturated fat. In fact, those with higher RDI's consumed, on a daily basis,

88.16 mg more cholesterol

21.96 g more protein

27.75 g more total fat

9.24 g more saturated fat

Although apnea is commonly correlated with obesity, these results were after correction based on body mass index (BMI), meaning that there seems to be an independent correlation between SDB and diet. Although it seems unwise to jump to conclusions, this study points strongly in the direction that, in some cases at least, sleep apnea causes obesity rather than the other way around.

If you find you are having trouble sticking to a diet and losing weight because of unexplained cravings or appetite that is out of control, perhaps SDB is to blame. Schedule a sleep apnea consultation at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois, today.

The study followed a 28-year old obese man who suffered both epilepsy and sleep apnea following brain trauma. They used a combination of EEG and polysomnography to monitor him for both seizures and apneic events. They detected both obstructive sleep apneas and central sleep apneas. They also found that there seemed to be a reinforcing effect between the two conditions. Sometimes apneic events were brought on by seizures, and sometimes seizures were brought on by apneic events.

As part of the case study, the researchers recommended that all epileptic patients whose condition is resistant to treatment, whether they present snoring or not, should be studied using a polysomnogram to determine both the presence of sleep apnea and what relationship it might have to their epilepsy.

Epilepsy is just one of many conditions that can be worsened by sleep apnea. If you have a medical condition that is resistant to treatment, it is possible that sleep apnea is a contributing factor. Consult with your doctor and contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois, to schedule a sleep apnea consultation.

The story showed three men, one who was just being diagnosed with sleep apnea, one who was getting ready to begin treatment for sleep apnea, and one who had been undergoing treatment with CPAP successfully for three years. The man prepared to begin treatment was fitted with a CPAP mask, and openly expressed his distaste for the machine. The story revealed that CPAP treatment only works for about 25 % of patients, and that the man who was fitted with the CPAP mask didn't feel he had slept any better with it than without it.

However, the story failed to give any mention to CPAP alternatives, such as oral appliance therapy. Oral appliance therapy is not for everyone, but neither is CPAP, and with the potentially deadly effects of sleep apnea, people need to be informed of all their options so they can find the treatment that works best for them.

If you have been diagnosed with sleep apnea and are trying to undergo treatment, but are finding that CPAP just isn't working for you, schedule a consultation with the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois today.

The study would seem to lend credibility to the theory we talked about last time: that obesity is an effect, not a cause, of sleep apnea, but it may not be true. It is important to remember that while all the patients experienced a dramatic reduction in BMI, they were by no means reduced to patients with an ideal BMI. Although they were no longer severely morbidly obese, they were still technically obese following their surgery.

More importantly, the study also found that although patients were still suffering from a potentially deadly degree of sleep apnea, the majority of them had discontinued use of their sleep apnea treatment, which in the study was CPAP. Most of them thought their sleep apnea was resolved, but this was probably due to the increase in energy they felt as a result of their weight loss. Once they felt this increase in energy, they were happy to be rid of the nuisance and discomfort of CPAP forever. It's possible that if the study had involved people being treated with oral appliance therapy, more of them might have continued their treatment following surgery.

If you have had bariatric surgery or lost a great deal of weight through diet and exercise, you may think your apnea is cured, but most likely it is not. However, there may be a more comfortable treatment option for your sleep apnea than your CPAP. To learn more about oral appliance therapy for sleep apnea, contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois today to schedule your sleep apnea consultation.

In human beings, two hormones that have a powerful effect on appetite are leptin and ghrelin. It is more complicated than this, but in general leptin suppresses appetite, while ghrelin stimulates appetite. In studies, the level of both hormones were found to be correlated with low sleep levels. In fact, in a Wisconsin Sleep Cohort Study of 1024 individuals, shorter sleep time was found to correlate both with increased ghrelin levels and lower leptin levels. Since leptin also stimulates the body to burn energy, the combination of elevated ghrelin levels and reduced leptin levels will lead to decreased energy consumption and increased appetite, leading to higher levels of obesity. The study's only caveat is that because of the population it contained more snorers than the overall population.

Interestingly, not all studies have confirmed these results. Some have found sleep apnea sufferers have elevated levels of leptin, not ghrelin, while others suggest that sleep apnea sufferers seem to have elevated levels of both hormones. What is agreed by all the studies, however, is that sleep deficiencies can have a significant impact on the levels of these hormones. And there is evidence that sleep apnea treatment with CPAP can regulate the level of these hormones. It is likely that in cases where oral appliance treatment is called for, it will also help regulate these levels.

So if you are a sleep apnea sufferer who is overweight, it is possible that your apnea is the cause of your weight gain, not the other way around. And if you have been trying to lose weight but have so far been unsuccessful, it may be due to sleep apnea. If you would like to learn more about the possible benefits of sleep apnea treatment, contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois today to schedule your sleep apnea consultation.

Researchers studied 110 adults, both snorers and nonsnorers, and evaluated them using polysomnography (commonly used to diagnose sleep apnea) and scanned them for carotid and femoral atherosclerosis. Based on the polysomnography, study subjects were divided into categories of mild, moderate, and heavy snorers. It was found that the risk of carotid atherosclerosis was 20 % for mild snorers, 32 % for moderate snorers, and 64 % for heavy snorers. There was no association between snoring and femoral atherosclerosis.

Snoring is more than just a nuisance. Not only can it be associated with sleep apnea, but it can have serious health complications of its own. If you are a snorer, you should seek snoring treatment today at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois.

The study looked at mice who were exposed to nocturnal CIH, and it monitored not only the visible sexual behaviors, but connected sexual hormones include testosterone and estrodiol, endothelial and neuronal nitric oxide synthase. Endothelial nitric oxide synthase is the hormone affected by sildenafil, tadalafil, and vardenafil, the active ingredients in Viagra, Cialis, and Levitra, respectively.

If you want to sleep better and be able to better enjoy your waking hours, contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois, for a free sleep apnea consultation today.

As part of the numerous dangers of sleep apnea, sleep apnea sufferers are at an increased risk of suffering diabetes. Some studies suggest that sleep apnea may worsen insulin resistance. In addition, behavioral effects related to daytime sleepiness, such as snacking and stimulant consumption, followed by inactivity, can worsen diabetes and impair behaviors such as exercise and diet control that are an important part of diabetes treatment.

If you suffer from diabetes, it is important to be tested for sleep apnea to make sure that you can effectively treat both conditions together for maximum effect. If you have diabetes and have not been tested for sleep apnea, but think you might have the condition, contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurnee, Illinois, today for a free initial sleep apnea consultation.

When provided by doctors and dentists trained in sleep apnea, such as Dr. Shapira, oral appliances are a better option for the treatment of sleep apnea than CPAP. Patients who are prescribed CPAP complain about the noise of the machine, or the claustrophobic feeling of the mask, which can cause nightmares. Patients do not like feeling tethered by the hose. Some patients report problems with allergies, acne, bronchitis, dizziness, and dry mouth or nose, and many suffer chronic sinus infections. As a result, only about 23-45 % of patients actually use their CPAP machine, meaning that their sleep apnea goes untreated and they continue to suffer the dangers of this condition.

Patients given the choice between CPAP and an oral appliance will generally choose the oral appliance, and because it is more comfortable, they will actually use their oral appliances and experience relief.

The comfort and relief provided make oral appliances a more effective sleep apnea treatment in most cases, and that is the reason why Dr. Shapira trains dentists and doctors in the use of oral appliance therapy for the treatment of sleep apnea. Dentists trained with Dr. Shapira provide oral appliance treatment in Grand Rapids, Michigan to Dallas, Texas; Tampa Bay, Florida to Palo Alto, California.

If you have either been prescribed CPAP, and either cannot use it or would rather try a better alternative, contact Dr. Shapira at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center today to learn how oral appliances can provide relief.

Many people experience an occasional ringing in the ears, but for some this phenomenon becomes persistent and may even lead to a reduction in productivity, an increase in irritability, and a general decrease in one's quality of life. In seeking treatment, people may see some of the best experts in the field of medicine, but still find no relief, despite many years and much money spent on numerous treatments and medications.

Why can something so simple be so hard to treat? Because it is often due to what is known as temporomandibular dysfunction (TMD), one of the hardest conditions to treat because it masquerades as so many other things. If you look at a partial list of the symptoms, you can see why. In addition to tinnitus, symptoms for TMD include:

· Headaches

· Facial and/or sinus pain

· Earache

· Dizziness

· Shoulder, neck, and other muscle pain

· Sleep disorders

· Irritable bowel, abdominal pain, and gastric reflux are often associated secondarily

Looking at the symptoms, it's easy to see why TMD can be confused with one or more other illnesses. If you have tinnitus or any of these other symptoms, and your doctor has been unable to provide relief, you should consult with a neuromuscular dentist. These specially-trained dentists specialize in treatment of TMD and its related symptoms.

Dr. Ira Shapira, founder of the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center, is a neuromuscular dentist who can provide relief for TMD and its symptoms. Please contact him today to schedule a consultation.

The SomnoDent MAS (Mandibular Advancement Splint) is a relatively simple oral appliance for the treatment of snoring and sleep apnea. It is manufactured by the SomnoMed corporation. Compared to both CPAP and most other oral appliances, it represents a minimalist solution to the problem of snoring and sleep apnea. The SomnoDent consists of two pieces that are custom-fitted to the teeth of the patient. One piece has flanges that fit into pockets in the other piece to maintain the jaw in an appropriate position during sleep.

Although it is a minimalist solution, it is highly effective. Objective studies showed that 63 % of patients treated with the device saw complete cessation of clinical obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) (reduction of apneic events to less than 5 per hour) or a 50 % improvement in their apnea/hypoxia index, a measure of blood oxygen levels during sleep. This includes mild, moderate, and severe sleep apnea sufferers. Studies also showed that SomnoDent users saw an increase in REM sleep, and a reduction in waking.

SomnoDent also improved snoring. On average, snorers saw a 43 % reduction in the number of snores per hour. The snoring was also quieter. Both the average snoring volume and the maximum snoring volume were reduced by 3 decibels.

Subjectively, 83 % of SomnoDent users said they had "significant improvement" in snoring, sleep quality, and reduction of daytime sleepiness. Its ease of use meant that 86 % of patients reported using the device every night. And the combination of comfort and effectiveness led 96 % of patients to say they would continue using SomnoDent MAS.

Because it is a minimalist solution, SomnoDent also has the benefit of being less expensive than other snoring and sleep apnea treatment options. If you would like to learn more about this inexpensive and effective treatment option, contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center in Gurney, Illinois, today for a free initial consultation.

Many users of CPAP complain about frequent sinus and ear pain. This pain can be the result of the positive pressure being forced into the otolaryngal cavity.

Obstructive sleep apnea is caused by the relaxation of soft tissues in the throat, which then collapse, constricting the airways. CPAP works by forcing enough air pressure into these airways to keep them open. However, air pressure cannot be selective. It fills the entire otolaryngal cavity, which means that the same pressure that is holding your airway open is pushing against your ears and your sinuses. This can lead to sinus pain and ear pain.

CPAP can be compared to carpet bombing an entire city to root out one nest of radicals, while in many cases what you really need is a targeted solution, a "smart bomb" that goes right to the source of your obstructive sleep apnea and leaves the rest of your airway alone.

For many people, oral appliances are that smart bomb. By correcting the actual obstructive configuration of tissues, oral appliances are a targeted therapy that corrects your sleep apnea without the collateral damage left by CPAP.

Stop fighting so hard against your sleep apnea that you do more harm than good. Instead, contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center today to learn how you can fight smart and sleep better without sinus and ear pain.

People are split on chiropractors. There are those who believe they are quacks and those who believe they are skilled medical practitioners capable of providing lasting relief to serious medical conditions. Patients have long been able to describe and voice the benefits they receive from going to the chiropractor, but objective measurement of these benefits has been difficult to obtain.

However, a recent study shows that adjusting the atlas, the top cervical vertebra, can lead to a significant decrease in blood pressure, one of the dangers of sleep apnea. The decrease was the equivalent of taking a double dose of prescribed blood pressure medications. Chiropractors who have eschewed full-spine adjustments in favor of delicate manipulations of the atlas vertebra see this finding as a vindication of their approach.

In a different study, it has been shown that neuromuscular dental treatment can help adjustments of the atlas vertebra to stay in place. Because the alignment of the atlas depends almost exclusively on soft tissue, including muscles and ligaments that can be affected by TMD.

To learn more about how neuromuscular dentistry can increase the effectiveness of your chiropractic treatments, contact Dr. Ira Shapira, neuromuscular dentist, at his Gurnee, Illinois office.

The first thing most people do for a headache is go to the medicine cabinet to take an aspirin, acetaminophen, or ibuprofen. However, all medications produce side effects, and these medications are no exception. Aspirin side effects include bleeding in the brain, kidney failure, and increased risk of stroke. Acetaminophen has been shown to be very bad for the liver, and ibuprofen is an NSAID, in the same class of medications as Vioxx, which was pulled from the market because of it increased risks for heart attack and stroke. As a result, it is wise to seek non-drug relief from chronic headaches.

Instead, consider neuromuscular dentistry. The trigeminal nerve, or dental nerve, accounts for half of all input into the central nervous system, and it controls the front 2/3 of the meninges (membranes) that control blood flow to the brain. Because of this role in controlling blood flow, the trigeminal nerve can be blamed for many chronic headaches.

Neuromuscular dentistry, by relieving pressure and dysfunction of the jaw, has, among other effects, the ability to improve the function of the trigeminal nerve.

To learn more about how neuromuscular dentistry can relieve your suffering from chronic headaches, contact Dr. Ira Shapira at his Gurnee, Illinois office.

One common complaint among CPAP users is that they get sinus and ear infections. They are more likely to suffer bronchitis than the general population. The constant mucous surplus created by your body in an attempt to fight against infection can be almost as disruptive as the sleep apnea that CPAP is designed to cure. These infections are the result of exposure to the micro-organisms that breed on the mask and hose of the CPAP machine. With daily use, the CPAP machine can host a dangerous menagerie of bacteria, fungi, and viruses that feed on the skin, mucous, and oils from your body that accumulate on the mask.

Then, once these populations have been breeding all day, the CPAP machine becomes a delivery system that pushes them inside your body. The positive airway pressure makes sure these micro-organisms are forced throughout your otolaryngal cavity. The inside of your ears, your throat, even your lungs are all seeded with a breeding population, making it highly likely that the populations will take hold. This is made even more likely as a result of the drying of your mucous membranes that can be a side effect of CPAP treatment.

To avoid the dangers of the CPAP machine, it is essential that you maintain an impeccable cleaning routine for the mask and hose. It is often advisable that you have several sets of hoses and masks so that you can rotate them and soak them in an antibiotic solution between uses.

Another option is the use of oral appliance therapy, which not only fosters less in the way of bacterial and other micro-organismal populations, but is easier to clean, and, even if it becomes populated, does not give these infectious disease organisms a free ride into your lungs. Most people prescribed CPAP therapy can actually get as good or better results from oral appliance therapy, without this health-threatening side effect.

To learn more about how oral appliance therapy can be healthier than CPAP, contact Dr. Ira Shapira at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center today.

Dr. Shapira has been treating people for sleep apnea in the Chicago area from his Gurnee office for over 25 years, and will soon extend the same high quality care to more patients through his partnership with another sleep apnea expert.

Dr. Alex Golbin is the founder of Sleep and Behavioral Medicine. He is a well-known expert on children with sleep disorders, and has written the only textbook on Sleep Psychiatry. He maintains three offices on the North Shore, in Vernon Hills, Skokie, and Bannockburn, all accredited by the Academy of Sleep Medicine. At these state-of-the-art offices, Dr. Golbin treats sleep apnea, insomnia, and bedwetting in children. He also coordinates a number of advanced research projects through his Vernon Hills office, constantly advancing the state of sleep medicine.

The hope is not only that this cooperative effort will not only give patients in the North Shore better access to advanced sleep medicine, but by sharing ideas, experience, and practices, the doctors will be able to improve the treatment of sleep disorders for all their patients.

If you are suffering any of the symptoms of sleep apnea, please contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center today for a free initial sleep apnea consultation.

Dr. Shapira became interested in sleep apnea treatment because his 3-year-old son, Billy, had severe snoring and suffered from night sweats. When he mentioned his concerns to his son's pediatricians, the concerns were brushed off. When his son was held back from starting kindergarten at age five, Dr. Shapira took matters into his own hands. He took Billy to Rush Medical School's sleep center, where it was determined that the boy had severe sleep apnea. Billy's apnea was treated, and he became a straight "A" student and graduated college with a double major Magna Cum Laude. This experience instilled in him a lifetime interest in sleep disorders. He became a Visiting Assistant Professor at Rush in the sleep service in the 1980's and returned as an Assistant Professor in the 1990's until early this century where he treated sleep apnea and snoring with oral appliances.

Partly as a result of Dr. Shapira's long campaign, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine now recognizes oral appliances as a first-line treatment of mild to moderate sleep apnea and an alternative treatment for severe apnea in patients who do not tolerate CPAP, and in winter 2008, The National Sleep Foundation declared oral appliances "A Therapy Whose Time Has Come."

To learn more about oral appliance therapy, and its ability to correct the major detriment of sleep apnea, please contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center today for a free consultation.

The Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) is, like the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index a questionnaire designed to measure daytime sleepiness. It is used both to indicate whether a person should undergo more conclusive sleep apnea diagnosis and to determine the success of sleep apnea treatment.

The ESS asks patients to rate their likelihood of falling asleep during certain activities, including sitting and reading, watching TV, at a meeting or in a movie theater, while driving, and others. The questionnaire makes sure patients know not to consider just feeling tired, but actually falling asleep. Patients rate each activity from 0 (no chance of falling asleep) to 3 (high chance of falling asleep).

The ESS was designed by doctors at the Epworth Hospital in Melbourne, Australia in 1991. The initial study used the ESS on a group of 180 patients, including 30 normal men and women, and 150 men and women with many different sleep disorders. The ESS was able to distinguish the controls from the rest of the group with a high degree of accuracy, and even distinguished persons with sleep apnea from those who merely snored.

Although the ESS is not a sufficient diagnostic tool, it can be used as a first-screening tool for determining whether you may have sleep apnea.

If you suspect you have sleep apnea, please contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center for a free sleep apnea consultation.

The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) is a questionnaire designed to determine the quality of sleep experienced by a person. The PSQI seeks to measure the sleep quality of a patient over the course of the last month. Originally designed by professors at the Pittsburgh School of Medicine to measure the sleep quality among psychiatric patients, since its introduction in 1989, the PSQI has been applied in many different contexts to many different populations, with a high degree of success.

In its initial test over an 18-month period, the test showed almost a 90 % sensitivity and specificity in distinguishing between good and bad sleepers. Month-to-month repeatability of results was high. Later clinical trials have also established that the test also had a high level of stability over two years.

The PSQI questionnaire includes questions directed at many different parameters over one month. First, it asks about the time a person goes to sleep, how long it takes to fall asleep, time of waking, and the amount of actual sleep per night. It asks questions about disruptions to sleep, including difficulty falling asleep, night waking, breathing difficulties, and bad dreams. The questionnaire also asks the respondent to get information from any cosleeper(s) about nighttime behaviors such as snoring and restless leg syndrome.

Although the PSQI cannot diagnose sleep apnea, it can be a useful tool for helping clarify a suspicion of the condition. It also can be very useful as a source document for starting your sleep diary, since it identifies many key parameters related to the quality of your sleep.

If you suspect you may have sleep apnea, please contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center, serving patients in the Chicago area, northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin, for a free sleep apnea consultation.

If you have central, obstructive, or mixed sleep apnea, you may be at risk for dangerous complications following surgery. According to studies, patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) were at double the risk of suffering complications following surgery, and nearly triple the risk for suffering serious complications, including transfer to the intensive care unit and cardiac events. In addition, patients with OSA had an average of 33 % longer hospital stay than patients with normal sleep patterns.

In addition, OSA sufferers are at a greater risk for complications related to sedatives or painkillers, and should be given limited dosages and closely monitored while on these drugs. Any surgery which may lead to swelling in the mouth and throat can become a deadly combination for OSA sufferers.

If you have sleep apnea, make sure your surgeon knows about it prior to any procedure, and make sure you ask your doctor explicitly about possible sleep-apnea-related complications with any prescribed medications.

If you have any sleep apnea symptoms, it may be best to have a conclusive diagnosis for sleep apnea performed before any major surgery. Please contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center today for a free initial consultation.

Because sleep apnea sufferers are at an increased risk for post-surgical complications, a team of Canadian Anesthesiologists has developed a very brief sleep apnea screening tool that can quickly be administered to all patients during preoperative interviews. The screening tool, known as STOP, consists of 4 questions:

Do you Snore loudly?

Do you often feel Tired, fatigued, or sleepy during the day?

Has anyone Observed you stop breathing during sleep?

Do you have or are you being treated for high blood Pressure?

A patient who answers yes to two or more questions is considered to be at high risk for sleep apnea. In an initial study, the questionnaire was found to have an 80 % sensitivity for those patients suffering from the highest level of sleep apnea-hypopnea. When combined with other risk factors for sleep apnea, such as body mass index, age, neck circumference, and gender, the sensitivity rose to virtually 100 % for the highest levels of sleep apnea-hypopnea.

If you suffer from sleep apnea, you could be placing yourself at risk for serious postoperative complications, complications that can be prepared against if you know about your condition beforehand. If you suspect you may have sleep apnea, please contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center today to set up your free sleep apnea consultation.

Carmen "The Cheeseman" DiNunzio, underboss of the Boston Mafia, was recently arraigned on charges of Conspiracy to Commit Bribery, Extortion, and various violations of gaming laws. When he was brought before the judge during his bail hearing, he cited sleep apnea as one of the reasons he should be released from prison. Other health ailments that he said should merit his release included type II diabetes, an overburdened heart, and clogged lungs, all of which are related to his severe obesity and are dangers of sleep apnea.

The 400-pound Mafioso was arrested when an FBI agent played the role of a state highway inspector seeking a bribe to give DiNunzio a $6 million contract for laying loam along Boston's Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway. The mobster described himself and his operation to the agent, who was carrying a concealed microphone and video camera.

Although it may not merit release for a "dangerous" mobster, sleep apnea is a serious condition that is not given enough regard by police officers and prison administrators. Many people arrested for even such free-speech related offenses as participating in sit-ins have noted that police do not allow the use of CPAP machines in jail. However, it is possible that, with education, police may be more receptive to the use of oral appliance therapy.

If you suffer from sleep apnea, you should consider the full range of treatment options beyond CPAP, whether or not you plan on being arrested! To learn more about sleep apnea treatment options, contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center today for your free sleep apnea consultation.

Sponsored by the Better Sleep Council, Better Sleep Awareness month hopes to help the 40 % of Americans that suffer from some form of sleep disorder, including sleep apnea. Whether you know what's causing you to lose sleep or not, there are some ways that you can improve your level of rest.

One way to improve your level of rest is to take a nap. For most people, some time during the hours between 12 and 3 in the afternoon, our bodies begin to prepare themselves for sleep. A drop in body temperature, a drop in alertness, a decrease in pulse rate and breathing rate, all combine to help the body prepare itself for the mid-afternoon nap that has been banned by modern society. However, if you can, take a nap from between 10 to 50 minutes some time before 3pm. Let your body dictate when you take it, but make sure you're up again by 3pm to avoid interfering with your night sleep.

Second, make sure that you rest for at least half an hour before heading to bed at night. No matter when you're going to bed, taking that half hour--even at the expense of a half hour of actual sleep--can mean better rest for your entire night's rest.

And if daytime sleepiness persists, you may suffer from sleep apnea. To learn more about the dangers of sleep apnea and be diagnosed for the illness, please contact the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center for your free initial consultation.

Gurnee, IL (April 2008)- Dr. Ira L. Shapira, of Delany Dental Care, will be participating in "The Big Sleep Show," An Alertness & Healthy Sleep Expo being held at the Donald E. Stevens Convention Center, May 9-10, 2008. Because sleep is a vital human need, our productivity, attitude, alertness-our very well being depends on its quality and quantity. An Institute of Medicine report estimates that 50 to 70 million Americans chronically suffer from sleep disorders and confirms links to "increased risk of hypertension, diabetes, obesity, depression, heart attack and stroke." Regrettably, 95% of people with sleep Disorders remain undiagnosed and untreated.

Dr. Shapira has successfully treated hundreds of patients with sleep apnea for over 25 years. Sleep apnea is a serious, potentially life-threatening condition in which an individual repeatedly stops breathing while he or she sleeps. Typical solutions for patients with sleep apnea include a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device. A CPAP device includes a mask, tubes and a fan that uses air pressure to push the tongue forward and open the throat. Although the industry's gold standard, CPAP is only 23-45% successful due to lack of patient compliance.

Dr. Shapira, a pioneer of oral appliance titration during sleep tests, will be lecturing on the benefits of intra-oral appliances, an alternative to CPAP. He will explain how intra-oral devices eliminate sleep apnea through Titration, which changes the position of the jaw causing mandibular advancement. His exhibit will display intra-oral sleep appliances. associated literature and other related materials.

For more information on Dr. Ira L. Shapira and "The Big Sleep" contact Delany Dental Care at 847-623-5530 or visit www.IHateCPAP.com.

Local Dentist To Lecture On Sleep Apnea At "The Big Sleep Show" –May 9-10, 2008-Chicago, IL

Dear Dr. Marc,

I would like to "Thank You" and your staff, for helping me in my great need.

I couldn't be happier with my new mouth piece. It works so wonderful for me. Since I have had my mouth piece, I sleep all night, I don't "snore" or "blow up with air in my stomach," like I did with the C-Pap.

I joined the BAC Health Club, I go most every day. I have a lot more energy, and I have been breathing much better. I am so very happy I got you, Dr. Siegel, off the Internet. You are my life saver! Before I got the splint, I had chest pains and breathing like I was taking my last breath. I didn't sleep at night at all. My poor husband said I was "restless" and "snoring" almost all night.

So you have made me and my husband very happy, Dr. Marc. Also, I would like to add that your staff has been the best.

Thank you again,

Rita