Sleep apnea is a severe sleep disorder that occurs when a person’s breathing is repeatedly interrupted while sleeping. Sleep apnea, if left untreated, leads patients to cease breathing hundreds of times during the night. Because it affects oxygen balance in the body, untreated sleep apnea raises the risk of a variety of cardiovascular disorders, including high blood pressure, heart attack, heart disease, and stroke.

What is sleep apnea?

Sleep apnea occurs when a person’s breathing stops and resumes during sleep. Here’s a summary of sleep apnea symptoms. Sleep apnea is a condition that causes uneven breathing while sleeping. Sleep apnea patients have frequent long pauses in their breathing while sleeping. These brief pauses in breathing degrade sleep quality and limit the body’s oxygen supply, potentially leading to serious health consequences. It can affect children, adults, and people of both sexes, though men are more likely to be affected.

What are the different types of sleep apnea?

• The most common type is obstructive sleep apnea, which happens when the muscles in the throat relax.
• When your brain fails to send sufficient signals to the muscles that control your breathing, you have central sleep apnea.
• Complex sleep apnea syndrome, also known as treatment-emergent central sleep apnea, is defined by the presence of both obstructive and central sleep apnea.

What are the signs of sleep apnea?

Both obstructive and central sleep apnea symptoms overlap, making it difficult to determine which type you have. Look for the symptoms of sleep apnea in your child also. The most common signs and symptoms of obstructive and central sleep apneas are as follows:

• Obnoxious snoring
• Episodes in which you stop breathing while asleep — as related by someone else
• During sleep, you’re gasping for air.
• Waking up with a dry tongue
• A headache in the morning
• Difficulties falling asleep (insomnia)
• Excessive drowsiness during the day (hypersomnia)
• Difficulty staying awake and paying attention
• Irritability

What Are the Health Consequences of Sleep Apnea?

Sleep apnea can induce sleep deprivation owing to frequent overnight interruptions and shallower overall sleep. Sleep deprivation is related to far-reaching health implications that affect a person physically, intellectually, and emotionally, so it’s no wonder that sleep apnea has been linked to a variety of health issues. If ignored, sleep apnea can lead to several health problems, including hypertension, stroke, cardiomyopathy (enlargement of the heart’s muscle tissue), heart failure, diabetes, and heart attacks. Untreated sleep apnea can also result in occupational impairment, work-related accidents, car accidents, and academic underachievement in children and adolescents.

Who is affected by sleep apnea?

A quarter of males and a tenth of females suffer from sleep apnea. Sleep apnea can affect people of all ages, including infants and children, but it is most frequent in people over the age of 50 and those who are overweight. Certain physical and clinical traits are common in obstructive sleep apnea patients. Excess weight, a large neck, and structural defects that narrow the upper airway, such as nasal obstruction, a low-hanging soft palate, swollen tonsils, or a petite jaw with an overbite, are examples.

We hope that this blog has provided you with all of the knowledge you need regarding sleep apnea. Are you looking for the best sleep apnea treatment in Winchester, VA? Visit us at Smiles of Virginia and we will take care of all your dental problems.

Sleep apnea is a type of sleep disorder that affects an individual’s breathing while he or she is sleeping. Untreated sleep apnea can make people prone to broken sleep because of repeated interrupted breathing. In other words, neither your mind nor your body will get enough oxygen. There are two main types of sleep apnea—central and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

Anyone can suffer from sleep apnea, i.e., men, women, as well as kids. It is a known fact that kids need around 10 to 11 hours of sleep every night. But sleep apnea can disturb their sleeping pattern, which might adversely affect their overall development and growth.

As a parent, it is important to look out for the warning signs of sleep apnea in your children. Some common symptoms of sleep apnea are as follows:

#1 Teeth grinding: When an individual’s airway is blocked by tongue, the body starts grinding the teeth subconsciously to get the required oxygen supply. Thus, using a mouthguard can prevent any damage to the teeth. However, the best thing to do is to consult a dentist to eradicate the matter.

#2 Naps: It is common for children to take naps during the day, particularly when they are hyperactive throughout the day. But, as they grow old, the habit of napping fades away. If your kid still takes a nap, after a certain age, it might be an indicator that he or she is not getting a good night’s sleep. If this is the case, you should consider scheduling an appointment with a dentist providing sleep apnea treatment in Winchester, VA.

#3 Breathing through the mouth: As humans, we are supposed to breathe through our noses. In the case of kids, in particular, breathing through the mouth instead of the nose can make the kids’ faces longer apart from weakening the tongue.

#4 Bedwetting: It is normal for kids up to the age of 5 to resort to bedwetting. But, if your kid still wets the bed after that age, it might be a problem. This may be a sign that your child is suffering from sleep apnea. Luckily, bedwetting can be avoided with the help of sleep apnea therapy.

Did you notice any of the symptoms in your child? If yes, then there might a possibility that his or her sleep at night might be interrupted. Thus, it is better to consult a dentist near you as a preventive measure. This is because early detection of sleep apnea can be treated with proper treatment. At Smiles of Virginia Family Dental Center, we offer a wide range of dental services, including treatment for sleep apnea in Winchester, VA. You can book an appointment with our dentists, who specialize in treating sleep apnea.

When your dentist recommends placing a dental crown over your tooth, it’s often because the tooth in question is damaged or blemished severely. To restore or improve the tooth, capping its entire visible crown structure is the best way to correct the issue. Given the nature of most oral health concerns and their tendency to get worse over time, it’s usually best to receive your dental crown as soon as possible. For optimal results, we can often recommend crafting and placing a dental crown all in one day, making it faster and more convenient to restore patients’ smiles.

Fixing damage to your tooth faster

One of the more common reasons for receiving a dental crown involves fixing some level of structural damage to your tooth. The goal of restorative treatment is to keep your treatment minimally invasive, and in minor cases of tooth damage, the right restoration may be something less involved, such as tooth bonding. If a dental crown is the appropriate option, it likely means the damage to your tooth is significant, and time will allow it to continue to get worse. Restoring your tooth with a same day crown in Winchester, VA means you can fix your tooth faster and reduce the risks of it experiencing even further damage.

Simplifying your overall dental treatment

The restorative benefits of a placing a dental crown over your tooth in just a day can have significant, positive implications for your oral health. Keeping your tooth strong and healthy also restores its functionality, making the dental crown essential to your long-term oral health. In addition to restoring your smile faster, however, same-day dental crowns also streamline the process of restoring your tooth in several different ways. For instance, same-day treatment means you won’t have to schedule multiple appointments just to have your crown placed. It also means your dental crown will be designed and crafted using advanced digital technology for optimal, highly lifelike results.

How a same-day dental crown works

Creating a same-day dental crown isn’t entirely different from creating and placing a traditional dental crown. Yet, the use of advanced, digital CEREC technology enhances every part of it. For example, digital imaging creates highly precise measurements of your tooth and dental ridge, and allows us to create a digital mold of your teeth to eliminate the need for a physical mold. The digital measurements are sent to an on-site milling machine that prints the restoration rapidly, allowing us to secure it permanently to your tooth all in just one day.

Using advanced CEREC technology, we can create and place your dental crown in just one day, which can have several benefits for improving your overall treatment. Contact us at Smiles of Virginia Family Dental Center to save your tooth and transform your smile with same-day crowns in Winchester, VA.

Some dental problems can affect your dental health immensely. It can impact your bite, the functioning of your teeth and also the look and feel of your gums and teeth. Dental problems can impact your health, your quality of life and your confidence in your smile. A full-mouth reconstruction in Winchester, VA can help you fix dental problems and restore a beautiful smile. With a smile makeover, you can not only change your smile but also upgrade your quality of life.

Reasons to Get a Full Mouth Reconstruction

A dentist near you will examine your mouth carefully to determine whether you need a full mouth reconstruction for improving your oral and overall health. Here are three reasons why a dentist may recommend a reconstruction:

#1 You Have Difficulty Chewing Food

If it is becoming harder for you to chew your food comfortably, there is some issue with your teeth and bite. The minimum requirement for your oral health is for your teeth to function importantly. The most important function of teeth being tearing and chewing food, it should be comfortable and not painful at all. If you find yourself avoiding certain food items because they are difficult to chew, you should consider a full mouth reconstruction.

#2 Your Teeth Ache

Body parts, including teeth, are not supposed to be painful. But if you feel pain even when you are not using your teeth for anything, it is a major red flag. Although you may wish to ignore it, toothache is generally a sign of something serious. Ignoring the issue and putting off treatment could have disastrous oral health consequences.

#3 You Hide Your Smile

If you feel embarrassed to flaunt your smile, there are high chances that your dental health is suffering. Cosmetic issues are often caused by underlying dental issues. Cosmetic issues of teeth and gums are quite common for patients who have suffered from infections, gum disease, tooth loss or decay in the past. Full mouth reconstruction can help fix your smile.

How Does Full Mouth Reconstruction Help You?

The main aim of a full mouth reconstruction is to restore oral health and the functioning of your teeth.  The secondary goal of mouth reconstruction is to make your smile look better. It is often achieved as a positive consequence of your dental treatment.

Better Oral Health

A full mouth reconstruction includes enhancing your oral health by fixing concerns such as:

• Treat tooth decay and fill any cavities
• Remove any infection from tooth and preserve the tooth with a root canal treatment
• Deep cleaning of gum line if there is any gum disease
• Repairing chipped, cracked or broken teeth
• Hiding discolored or stained teeth with crowns to give a natural look
• Replace any missing teeth with dental implants or dental bridges

Enhanced Smile

With modern dental technology and techniques, restorative treatments can improve the appearance of your smile greatly. From bringing the healthy pink color back after gum disease treatment to our natural-looking dental implants and restorations, you’ll already feel and look better than you have in a long time.

But once your mouth is healthy again, you may still have some primarily cosmetic issues to address with your teeth and gums. These issues can be fixed with procedures like orthodontics, whitening, tooth bonding or gum shaping to make your smile look more attractive and healthy.

If you want to change something about your smile, you should schedule a consultation to see if full mouth reconstruction in Winchester VA is the option for you. At Smiles of Virginia Family Dental Center, we are committed to help you rebuild your confidence in your smile.

Gum disease is one of the most prevalent dental issues in America. As the disease develops in three different stages, paying careful attention to its symptoms can help you identify it early. When you go in for a cleaning, your dentist in Winchester, VA will help you catch the signs of gum disease early so that the condition can be treated before it becomes irreversible.

The early signs and stages of gum disease are reversible but the later stages are not. This is why it is essential to know the symptoms of gum disease and practice good oral hygiene. Put simply, gum disease is an inflammation around the gum line, where your teeth and roots reside. Inflammation of the gum line can impact the connective gum tissue that surrounds and supports the teeth and the jawbones. If the gum tissues start to deteriorate, you can experience major dental problems and issues with the structure of your teeth. The best way to prevent gum disease from developing and becoming severe over time is to keep your gums healthy. If you want to know more  about the causes of gum disease, please read this article.

Understanding the Stages of Gum Disease

Gum disease develops over three stages – gingivitis, periodontitis and advanced periodontitis. The first stage – gingivitis is both reversible and preventable with good oral hygiene and regular dental cleanings. Visiting a periodontist dentist near you will help in preventing gum disease from impacting your dental and overall health.

1. The First Stage – Gingivitis

This is the earliest or the mildest stage of gum disease. As patients experience no to little discomfort if they have gingivitis, it can often remain undetected. The best way to identify periodontal disease is to look out for signs such as swelling redness or bleeding while flossing or brushing. Gingivitis mostly occurs due to improper oral hygiene. Luckily, it is reversible with proper treatment. When you visit a dentist near you in Winchester, VA; ask your dentist to look for signs of gingivitis. Catching the disease early at your next dental check-up is an effective way of preventing it from developing into severe periodontitis.

2. The Second Stage – Periodontitis

When left untreated, gingivitis advances to the next stage called periodontitis. During this stage, the plaque has build-up along the gum line and toxins start to accumulate in the gums. When periodontal disease has developed, the gums have been permanently damaged and they cannot return to their normal state. It is imperative to seek treatment as the condition will only worsen over time if it is left untreated. In this stage, pockets become visible between the teeth and the gums and plaque and food start getting trapped in these pockets easily. In this situation, you will need to follow a strict oral hygiene routine to prevent the condition from becoming severe.

3. The Third Stage – Advanced Periodontitis

Once the gums have reached this stage, the infection causes gums to deteriorate and lose the ability to support the teeth. This is because the connective tissue and supporting bone become weak over time. Some patients can start to see their teeth loosen and shift because their gums are too weak to hold them in place. Professional periodontal therapy is necessary at this stage to treat the condition, along with effective oral care at home. If the disease has advanced a lot, tooth extraction may become imperative.

Periodontal Disease – Treatment and Prevention

The key to preventing gum disease is proper oral healthcare such as proper brushing and flossing. You should also schedule regular dental appointments for proper teeth cleaning and plaque removal. If your dentist spots any signs of gum disease, they can give advice on proper oral healthcare. For minor gingivitis, professional cleaning and fluoride treatments can be beneficial. For advanced stages, periodontal therapy in Winchester VA including gum grafting surgery may be necessary..

If you think you have any of the symptoms of a gum disease or experience pain, the Smiles of Virginia Family Dental Center team is here to help you. Don’t give gum disease a chance to expand. Get professional help today.

Most people think that teeth whitening is an expensive dental procedure and that the outcome is not worth the money. However, you couldn’t be more wrong. Teeth whitening is a part of cosmetic dental dentistry- the field of dentistry responsible for enhancing the aesthetics of your smile. A bright, white smile can enhance your confidence levels.

Did you know that your smile has a big role to play in creating your first impression? As per AdWeek, a bright smile conveys confidence. It is important to note in this regard that the best way to get a bright smile is by getting a beautiful white set of teeth. That being said, here are the 4 specific benefits of professional teeth whitening:

1. A fast way to enhance your smile

Teeth whitening takes only about an hour or two to get you a pearly white smile. It’s one of the fastest and painless dental procedures to enhance your smile! You just walk into the dental clinic with stained teeth and walk out of there with whitened teeth within a couple of hours!

Thus, if you have a party you have to attend tomorrow and you need beautiful teeth to smile brightly in it, a professional teeth whitening session at the dentist will help you get it!

2. It’s long-lasting

Once you get professional teeth whitening, it doesn’t fade away too easily! The results usually last over 6 months, or even a year if taken proper care of! All you have to do is to stay away from smoking and caffeine as much as you can!

3. Expert supervision

Professional teeth whitening can get your teeth consistent whiteness, brighter shades of white, long-lasting whiteness and more since a professional dentist will be in charge of the procedure!

Even when your dentist gives you at-home whitening kits, they are designed to fit your teeth perfectly, unlike over-the-counter whitening kits. This provides you with the consistent whiteness that you desire across your teeth.

4. It’s a safe procedure

What’s best about a professional teeth whitening session is the fact that it is one of those dental procedures that have no risks associated. It’s a painless dental procedure and the least invasive. Not many dental procedures can improve your smile as easily as professional teeth whitening does!

One of the things that you should be aware of is that this cosmetic dental procedure requires precision to attain the best shade of white. Thus, we would recommend that you do your research before choosing your cosmetic dentist. However, if you’re in Winchester, Virginia, we will make your job a little easier! You can get the best cosmetic dentist near you with just one click!

What is sedation dentistry about?

As the term suggests, sedation dentistry is the practice of relaxing a patient during dental treatment by the use of medically approved sedatives. There are numerous forms of sedation that a dentist can choose from.

The type of sedation that the patient receives depends upon the dentist’s expertise, qualifications, and the patient’s tolerance level.

Sedation dentistry is safe and usually does not give rise to severe complications. However, it’s best to consult with your dentist before undergoing sedation. WebMD points out:

…certain people, such as those who are obese or who have obstructive sleep apnea, should talk to their doctor before having sedation. That’s because they are more likely to develop complications from the anesthesia.

Why would you need sedation dentistry?

People who have dental anxiety would best tell you why they would sedation dentistry. As a matter of fact, the concept of sedation dentistry itself is aimed at reducing dental anxiety in patients and helping them relax during a dental procedure. This helps more patients with dental anxiety to get the dental treatment they need and keep their oral health in check.

However, with reducing dental anxiety, there are some more benefits of sedation dentistry that come along.

Benefits of sedation dentistry

1. Reduced dental anxiety, reduced blood loss

When you are anxious and scared, you tend to lose more blood than usual since your blood pressure goes higher. When you’re totally relaxed, you lose minimal blood and energy!

2. Easy treatment

When the dentist does not have to constantly be resisted by your gag reflexes, he can get done with the dental treatment much faster. Good for you, and your dentist!

3. Cost-effective

Sedation dentistry is cost-effective. How? When you get your dental treatment done quicker, long procedures would need less time to complete and more work can be done in a single visit. Thus, you take fewer appointments for dental treatment!

4. You don’t have to remember anything!

Unlike other forms of sedation, Intravenous (IV) sedation puts you to sleep during the procedure and when you wake up, your treatment is done! So just walk in, walk out, and remember nothing in between!

IV sedation can, however, be practiced by authorized dentists and you wouldn’t find too many near you. But we can help? You can get the only IV sedation dentist within a 50 miles radius in Winchester VA.

So what are you waiting for? Now that you can relax at the dental clinic, go get your long-awaited dental treatment or check-up done!

Dental technology has advanced over the years to deliver patients with care that is comfortable, painless and less time-consuming. Previously, while old traditional X-ray techniques were being used, there used to crop many issues related to waiting time, preparation time (wait time for the film to be developed), environmental concerns and so on. Digital radiography has therefore truly revolutionized the technique of dental X-rays and also the practice of professional dentists.

How does digital radiography work?

The process of digital radiography is quite similar to that of traditional dental X-rays. In digital radiography, a sensor is inserted into your mouth which aids in capturing the images of your teeth. Here lies the difference between old school X-rays and digital X-rays. Although it looks like the film used for traditional X-rays, the digital sensor is an electronic device connected to a computer. The device captures the images and then projects them on a screen instantly for both you and your dentist to view.

Digital X-rays have a lot of virtues to harp upon. Some of them have been listed in this article. Next time you walk in for a dental X-Ray, you need not really panic about its consequences as these are completely safe and without health hazards.

7 remarkable benefits of Digital dental X-Rays

• Lesser Radiation– Digital X-Rays are known to use 90% less radiation then traditional X-Rays
• Easier Dental Appointments– No amount of preparation time is needed.
• Much higher Quality Images– The images can be blown up to any size for your dentist to accurately look for issues, if any.
• Transferring Dental Records immediately– Since in the digitized form, therefore, they can be instantly sent to any other specialty office for further reference, within seconds.
• Environmental Friendly– Digital radiography does not have to use any chemicals for developing the film.
• The complete picture is available– This feature typically ensures that you obtain the best diagnosis possible.
• Immediate Viewing– Digital radiography allows real time viewing of your oral cavity. With much lesser radiation exposure, this is a unique advantage.

In short, Film x-rays were invented as early as 1895 which is over 125 years ago. Technology has come a very long way since that era and film x-rays are now quite an antique practice.

Although Film x-ray technology costs less than digital x-ray technology, yet, long-term exposure to film x-rays can be harmful. It affects the patient’s overall dental health due to the increased amounts of radiation that are needed to expose these types of films. Most modern dental offices have by now switched over to this digitized form as it ensures –

• A more than 70% less radiation
• Lesser discomfort
• Detecting problems sooner
• Lesser time in the chair

The qualities of service, shorter time consumed and better access to the information concerned with their own dental health, are some of the factors that matter a lot to patients!