Understanding The Difference Between Snoring vs Sleep Apnea

Sleep apnea and snoring affect a person’s air passage. Understanding the difference benefits in many ways. The first of which is the preventative measures to take including getting to the cause of sleep apnea followed by sleep apnea treatments.

Snoring and apnea are both classified as sleep disorders that affect the air passage directly . The reactions in the body are similar but not same. But the snoring happens when the muscles in the throat relax a little too much. Hence, the needed amount of air is expelled intensely and at a higher speed, which causes the vibration of soft tissues like the tongue.

The cause of sleep apnea is triggered due to the interruption of respiration by the blockage of the airway in the throat. This happenstance can last for several seconds and the person only breathe again when the airway reopens. Apnea occurrence may go on repeatedly for up to 300 times in a night!

How can snoring and apnea be diagnosed?

The conventional way to diagnose snoring and apnea is through clinical exams to make an assessment of the patient during sleep. Doctors will record symptoms like loudness in the snores and the moments when a person wakes up due to shortness of air.

However, this diagnosis is not exclusive to physicians only. Family members or friends can also conduct such a test at home. There is also the medical diagnosis that can be carried out with a sleep study called polysomnography (PSG). It monitors your sleep through modern electronic gears. The clinical examination can be done by a dentist or a specialized doctor and it is mostly conducted for the evaluation of the patient’s airway.

Treatments for sleep apnea and snoring

The treatment of airways is fundamental to stop snoring. A patient will find medical to surgical solutions to stop snoring since devices may not guarantee a definitive answer under severe circumstances. Snoring and apnea can be treated with breathing apparatus such as “Continuous positive air pressure” or CPAP.

Just like any surgery, it also contains risks. Surgery (uvulopalatopharyngoplasty) has an unsatisfactory success rate.

Asonor Nasal Spray

Anti-snoring devices offer easy access and usage. They are also less invasive like nasal spray, which is a medication pumped into the nostrils.

You can feel breathing relief at the first usage since it makes the muscles in your airways less relaxed. The top reasons are that it is clinically approved, gives great cost-benefit ratio due to the highly successful rate and it does not have side effects.

Anti-snoring mouthpiece- Snore guard

This intra-oral device must be applied by the patient only at bedtime. It is customized according to each patient to fit in the upper and lower teeth perfectly which makes it a comfortable and snap-on/snap-off sleep apnea treatment device.

It repositions the jaw and tongue into the right spots. As a result, the airways work normally with no more noises (snore) or apnea (lack of air). The device is easy to adapt. It is a conservative and non-aggressive and reversible treatment.

Healthy treatments like weight loss, proper diet, exercise, a decrease in the amount of alcohol, and prevention from sedatives are also effective sleep apnea treatments to stop snoring, which brings multiple benefits to your lifestyle.