Positive Airway Pressure (PAP)

For those who can use it, PAP (positive airway pressure) therapy is said to be the best professional fix.  Continuous, or CPAP, is a common type.  Apnea is a form of sleep disordered breathing (SDB) which causes the airway to collapse partially or fully.

Pressure (applied through a mask) keeps the airway open.  Sleeping pills won’t work and could worsen the problem.  PAP therapy can also help relieve depression and insomnia. Both may be linked to SDB.

For more info on CPAP click here. You will go to the American Academy of Otolaryngology web site.

PAP therapy is considered the gold standard for treating sleep apnea, so only if that fails should you try other things, such as dental devices that push your jaw forward while you sleep.  They can open the upper airway.

Surgery
Surgery should be the last approach.  It’s the most invasive and it’s said to be only effective sometimes.

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