Many people with dentures also have problems with sleep apnea. Oral appliance therapy can resolve many sleep apnea cases and can be made to work for denture patients with dental implants, according to the Sacramento Dentistry Group. Implants improve dentures and help to stop snoring.
For many patients with mild or moderate cases of sleep apnea, oral appliances can take the place of a CPAP machine. Even for patients with severe sleep apnea, oral appliances can improve their treatment in combination with CPAP. Patients with dentures, however, often have no natural attachment points for an oral appliance. Nevertheless, they can still use oral appliance therapy to treat their sleep apnea if their dentures attach with dental implants.
Oral appliances are readily adapted for use with dental implants. With dentures mounted on implants, a patient has a solid foundation for biting and speaking throughout the day and then uses those implants at night to attach an appliance that prevents apnea episodes and snoring. Since sleep apnea is more common among elderly patients, many clients with sleep disorders may already have implants in place. Before they go to sleep, they simply remove their denture as normal, and replace it with an oral appliance, says the Sacramento Dentistry Group.
