The mask is uncomfortable, the machine is noisy, and the constant inflow of dry air irritates the nose, mouth, and throat. It’s no wonder so many people are looking for alternatives to continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy for managing sleep apnea.
Are you tired of your CPAP? We can help.
At Respacare in Bridgewater, New Jersey, our sleep medicine experts Dr. Nehal Mehta and Dr. Preshant Patel want you to breathe better so you can sleep better. Though CPAP therapy is the primary treatment for moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea, it’s not right for everyone.
In this month’s blog, we want to talk about other treatments for sleep apnea for those tired of CPAP therapy.
CPAP therapy is an effective treatment for obstructive sleep apnea, a serious sleep disorder that disrupts breathing while sleeping due to blocked airways. The blocked airway causes a decline in blood oxygen levels that triggers an arousal reflex waking you up (though you’re likely unaware) to breathe.
You may stop and restart breathing hundreds of times while you sleep, affecting the quality of your sleep and ultimately your health. The disruption in breathing occurs when muscles in the back of your throat relax during sleep, blocking the airway. Anyone can develop obstructive sleep apnea, but it’s more common in people with obesity, jaw or structural abnormalities, or a family history.
CPAP therapy consists of a machine, tube, and mask. The machine blows air through the tube into a mask that covers your mouth and nose, creating a steady stream of pressure that keeps the airway open, so you breathe easy and sleep better.
CPAP therapy is effective, but the mask and machine may make it hard for you to rest well. Thanks to advancements in treatments for sleep apnea, CPAP isn’t your only option.
The goal of sleep apnea treatment is to improve sleep quality and overall health. If you’re tired of CPAP therapy, you may want to consider:
If you find the pressure from your CPAP therapy uncomfortable, an alternative PAP therapy may be more comfortable. The Bi-level PAP (BiPAP), for example, allows you to adjust pressure settings for better comfort. The auto-adjusting PAP (APAP) may also feel more comfortable, automatically adjusting pressure based on your breathing pattern.
An oral appliance is a mouthpiece that keeps the airway open by changing the position of your jaw and tongue. We offer SomnoGuard® for people looking for other treatments for sleep apnea. The mouth guard is custom-made to fit your mouth so it’s comfortable and effective.
Inspire is one of the newest treatment options for sleep apnea. It’s an implantable device that works like a pacemaker, monitoring your breathing while you sleep and stimulating the muscles in the throat to open the airway when breathing is blocked. You use a remote device to turn the device on when you go to sleep and off when you wake up.
We offer Inspire therapy for our patients with obstructive sleep apnea.
Surgery is also an option for obstructive sleep apnea if you’re having a hard time tolerating your CPAP. Procedures are customized based on the underlying cause but aim to eliminate the cause of the obstruction, such as surgery to remove enlarged tonsils or reconstructive surgery that widens the throat.
We only recommend surgery when medical interventions aren’t effective.
If you’re tired of using your CPAP, please reach out to us to schedule a consultation. We can discuss treatment options and do sleep disorder testing to determine what therapy is right for you.
We proudly offer remote patient monitoring for sleep apnea through Spire Health, using wearable sensors that track your breathing, pulse, and activity, allowing us to closely monitor your sleep apnea while you sleep in your own bed. Remote patient monitoring lets us see what’s happening in real time so we can make more effective adjustments to your treatment.
If CPAP therapy is no longer working for you, call our office at 732-356-9950 or request an appointment online. We can help you find a sleep apnea treatment that’s a better fit for you.
