Visit the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute for an excellent illustration showing how anatomically obstructive sleep apnea occurs.
Since the appliance connects the upper and lower arch (top and bottom teeth), the bottom jaw is only allowed to fall back or advance as far as titration allows, thus opening the airway. Final titration is a achieved through many weeks of very slight advancement. During this time, you will see your dentist who is qualified to oversee and manage your treatment roughly every two to four weeks to report how you are responding to the device, evaluate your dentition as wearing the device may cause your bite to change, and recommend the next phase of titration.
Since many people cannot tolerate a CPAP machine, an oral appliance is often a more comfortable, effective, and not to mention easily transportable alternative. As always, the most important decision to make is to GET DIAGNOSED AND TREATED using whatever method works best for you! Don’t stop until you find a treatment that does work, it could save your life.
