Sleep Apnea

Conventional Medical Testing for Sleep Apnea

• Traditionally, sleep apnea has been tested in polysomnographic sleep laboratories at hospitals and teaching institutions according to standard measures and techniques, often as a precursor to surgical treatment
• A recent breakthrough in sleep apnea screening, the Sleep Strip is a device worn overnight at home,comfortably fitted under the nose, providing next-day results on a person's Apnea Hypopnea Index (AHI). Due to the long waiting lists for sleep study and the chance of you not having sleep apnea, sleep strip is an effective screening tool as what the next step may be in addressing your sleep problem
• The SleepStrip has just been introduced in Australia, available through Inspiring Choices by calling (03) 95254455 or you can order on line
• Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is the most common management program for sleep apnea a CPAP machine pushes air through the airways at a pressure high enough to keep the airways open during sleep.Many variation of the C-PAP is available. Even though for chronic cases ,it is necessary to start with CPAP,and gradually reduce its use as the health improves.Needless to say, nobody enjoys sleeping all night with a mask.
• Surgically, cutting a permanent breathing hole in the neck (tracheotomy)
• Cutting out the back of the mouth (uvulopatopharyngoplasty)
• Removing the adenoids and tonsils and/or trimming the nasal passages.
• Removing the soft palate (paletoplasty)
• Removing the uvula
• Where snoring is caused by a larger hyoid bone, maxillomandibular surgery is performed
• Oral appliance therapy to bring forward the lower jaw to create more space for breathing

All surgical options involve some risk and are well known to fail in a high percentage of cases, making them drastic measures for a condition predominantly caused by lifestyle, dietary factors and poor brain integeration, an area where holistic, natural and functional medicine excels.

Our practitioners are available for interview at Sleep 4 Health. Please contact Sleep 4 Health.