What Causes Snoring and Sleep Apnea?
When you breathe, air travels down your throat, through your windpipe and into your lungs. The narrowest part of that pathway is in the back of your throat.

When you're awake, muscles keep that pathway relatively wide open. But when you sleep, those muscles relax, allowing the opening to narrow. The air passing through this narrowed opening may cause the throat to vibrate. That causes snoring, which many people experience.

When the airway narrows or partially collapses snoring results, which is the sound of tissues vibrating. Where there is complete collapse, you have an incidence of sleep apnea, which is when breathing stops altogether.

What the SomnoDent MAS™ does
The SomnoDent MAS™ positions your lower jaw slightly forward of its natural position, which has the effect of tightening the soft flesh (or ‘tissue’) at the back of your throat, which prevents it from collapsing.

The patented fin-coupling mechanism on the lower arch of the SomnoMed splint ensures that your lower jaw (mandible) remains in the correct position, whether you sleep with your mouth open or closed – or open your mouth for any other reason, such as to take a drink.

This freedom to move your jaw up and down, without compromising the effectiveness of the device, is a unique feature of the SomnoDent MAS™.

Why see Dr. Stephen Burch?
Dr. Burch is a neuromuscular dentist who has the expertise to diagnose and treat snoring and sleep apnea. He has been trained to help you determine what method of treatment would be best for you. Many patients he sees have been determined to be CPAP intolerant. A dental devise such as this may be an excellent alternative. Dental orthodontics and or reengineering the final resting position of the teeth with porcelain may be needed. Some patients may be surgical candidates as well. Come to the dentist who truly does it all and experience what others have discovered…. Looking your best, enhancing your health, longevity and intelligence starts with a neuromuscular examination. Call today.

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