Do you snore?
Are you waking up tired? We can help. Find out if you are at risk of sleep apnea. Take this short quiz.
Sleep apnea management – Somnomed
Better sleep for a better YOU
Getting a good night’s sleep is an essential part of our well-being. Sleep helps our body and brain function properly. When we sleep, we allow our body to recharge, repair and rebuild. Quality sleep leads to a stronger immune system, improved concentration, and better problem-solving and decision-making skills.
If we don’t sleep enough, we feel tired and irritable and may have difficulty concentrating at work. Not getting enough quality sleep on a regular basis can pose these risks to our physical and mental health:
Weakened immunity
Greater risk of accident/injury
Cardiovascular Disease
Diabetes
Poor mental health
What is sleep deprivation?
Sleep deprivation is a condition caused by consistent lack of sleep or reduced quality of sleep. The main signs and symptoms of sleep deprivation include experiencing excessive daytime sleepiness and fatigue, and feeling unfocused during the day.
Sleep deprivation can be caused by:
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Sleep disorders
E.g. sleep apnea, insomnia, narcolepsy, and restless legs syndrome.
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Poor sleep hygiene
E.g. irregular bedtime routines due to lifestyle choices or work obligations
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Ageing
People older than 65 have trouble sleeping because of ageing, medicine they’re taking, or health problems they’re having.
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Illnesses
Sleep deprivation is common with depression, schizophrenia, chronic pain syndrome, cancer, stroke, and Alzheimer disease.
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Other factors
E.g. stress, a change in schedule, or a new baby disrupting your sleep schedule.
What is Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)?
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is the most common sleep-related breathing disorder. It causes you to repeatedly stop and start breathing while you sleep, causing loud snoring and daytime tiredness, even with a full night’s sleep. OSA has been linked to a number of health problems like hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, work and driving-related accidents and even stroke.
What Causes OSA?
All of the muscles in the body relax during sleep. In people without obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), the throat muscles relax but do not block the airways. In patients with OSA, the airways become temporarily blocked or narrowed during sleep, which can lower the oxygen level in your blood.
Your brain senses this impaired breathing and briefly wakes you up from sleep so that you can reopen your airway. This awakening is usually so brief that you don’t remember it. You might snort, choke or gasp.
Most of the time, the person sleeping is not aware of the breathing stoppages, but their body is, causing them to be tired during the day.
1 in 3 Singaporeans suffers from moderate to severe sleep apnea, and 1 in 10 suffers from severe sleep apnea.
Signs & Symptoms of OSA
Screening tools for Obstructive Sleep Apnea
Sleep Screening Questionnaires
Are you at risk for sleep apnea? Try our sleep questionnaires
Home Sleep Apnea Testing (HSAT)
A home sleep apnea test (HSAT) is a convenient, non-invasive reliable screening tool for OSA. Using HSAT we can measure:
- Oxygen Saturation (SpO2)
- Pulse Rate (PR)
- Apnea Hypopnea Index (AHI)
- Sleep Stages : Awake, REM, NREM
- Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) Response
- Movement
Belun® Ring
Belun®Ring provides home sleep apnea screening and monitors sleep health through a clinically validated AI algorithm. Belun® Ring is easy to use and affordable with medical accuracy. Put the ring on before sleep. A sleep report will be generated automatically in the morning, revealing your sleep apnea risk, sleep efficiency, and stress level.
NightOwl®
NightOwl® testing device is a diagnostic tool for OSA. This device system comes with a small sensor and a cloud-based analytics platform. The patient can initiate the testing by wearing the sensor on the fingertip with the help of an adhesive patch. This device can work for about three nights without needing a battery recharge. It allows capturing the variability of sleep apnea between nights to reach an appropriate diagnosis.
How we can help you get better sleep
Oral Appliance Therapy
Invisalign
Myofunctional Therapy
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Invisalign
Invisalign is used to treat patients who may have mildly crooked or protruding teeth to severe dental problems involving severe crowding, spacing, overbite or an underbite.
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Oral Appliance Therapy
Involves Mandibular Advancement Devices (MAD), which advance the lower jaw and tongue away from the throat to keep the airways open.
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Myofunctional Therapy
Aims to encourage nasal breathing, strengthen tongue muscles and encourage proper tongue swallowing and resting position.
Oral Appliance Therapy
Oral appliance therapy is a treatment for snoring and sleep apnea. It involves wearing a custom-fitted, removable oral appliance in your mouth when you sleep. An oral appliance prevents your airway from collapsing by either holding the tongue or supporting the jaw in a forward position.
SomnoDent Avant™
The SomnoDent oral sleep appliance treats obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) by advancing the lower jaw which keeps the airways open. The appliance is custom-made to fit your mouth and consists of upper and lower splint that cover your teeth and will be titrated to advance your lower jaw throughout the treatment process. As your jaw moves forward it, in turn, helps open your airway allowing you to breathe easier and sleep more comfortably for longer periods of time, helping you to reach deep, REM sleep.
ProSomnus EVO™
ProSomnus Sleep and Snore Devices are custom fitted to your own mouth, they are very comfortable and make sleeping easier. Wearing the ProSomnus device (like a mouthguard for your upper and lower jaw) holds your lower jaw gently forward and opens the airway in the back of your throat. This makes it less likely that the air rippling through the partially closed airway causes snoring and your breathing flows more easily. This treatment is very effective for both sleep apnea and snoring.
According to the American Dental Association, “Oral appliance therapy is an appropriate treatment for mild and moderate sleep apnea, and for severe sleep apnea when a CPAP is not tolerated by the patient.”
Oral appliances for sleep apnea are:
Light weight and portable – you don’t have to worry about carrying around big bulky devices when travelling
Easy to maintain
Silent
Able to prevent snoring and teeth grinding
Resources/related reads
News & research on OSA
Dr. Yue Weng Cheu
Founder and Clinical Director of DP Dental
Dr Yue Weng Cheu is the Founder and Clinical Director of DP Dental, which currently operates two branches in Kovan and Orchard. He is well-known for his functional and integrative approach to dentistry that promotes health and wellness of the whole person, and focuses on the root causes of oral disease.
Dr Yue graduated from NUS Dentistry with The Pierre Fauchard Academy Foundation Annual Scholarship Award. He is an internationally recognised expert and has given lectures locally and internationally on topics of Clinical Digital Photography, CAD-CAM Digital Dentistry, Laser Dentistry, TMD, Ankyloglossia, Myofunctional Therapy, Invisalign and Sleep Medicine.
Aside from his various accreditations, he has completed the full TMD continuum at Occlusion Connections in USA, and finished his mini-residency on Dental Sleep Medicine with TUFTS University School of Medicine.
Through modern, evidence-based approaches, Dr Yue has successfully treated various cases of TMD and teeth misalignment, WITHOUT EXTRACTION. Dr Yue also works with various other health practitioners to restore tongue, breathing and sleep functions to effect multi-systems recovery for patients of all ages.
Dr Loh Ee Tyug
Senior Associate Dentist and Clinical Director, DP Dental Kovan
Dr Loh Ee Tyug received her Bachelor of Dental Surgery from National University of Singapore in 2001, where she received numerous awards, including the FAC Ohlers Award for the Best Clinical Student.
Through years of practice, Dr Loh keeps herself updated by continually upgrading her skills and knowledge both locally and overseas in the fields of implantology, CAD/CAM (CEREC), TMD, Occlusion and Gnathology, Invisalign, Aesthetic Dentistry, Myobrace, Myofunctional habit corrections and Dental Sleep Medicine.
Being a firm believer in the philosophy that “Prevention is better than Cure”, in 2015 Dr Loh attended Myobrace Training in Australia alongside DP Dental’s directors to learn and train in myofunctional habit corrections and early intervention.
Dr Loh now pioneers the Myofunctional Therapy treatment at DP Dental.
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