Can’t stop snoring? Your TONGUE could be to blame: Overcrowding in the mouth can trigger a dangerous sleep disorder.
- Dentists could be key to spotting signs of the sleep disorder apnoea
- Study looked at factors such as weight and tongue, tonsil and neck size
- About 80 per cent of the participants found to be at risk were male
It’s long been the cause of sleepless nights, frazzled nerves and couples sleeping in separate bedrooms.
But now experts believe they have found a biological cause behind snoring – and the good news is, it’s not your fault.
A large tongue and oversize tonsils could cause the potentially lethal sleep disorder – obstructive sleep apnoea.
The condition – which causes snoring and dangerous pauses in breathing – can lead to more serious health problems such as stroke or heart attack.
And while many do not know they have it, the new study suggests dentists could be key to spotting signs of the condition.
Led by orthodontic researcher Thikriat Al-Jewair, he claims that oversized tonsils and tongue indentations – teeth imprints along the tongue that indicate it is too large for the mouth – showed a high risk for the condition.
The assistant professor, from the University at Buffalo, said that dentists are in the unique position as health care professionals to pinpoint signs of the disorder in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts during sleep due to blocked upper airways.
Sleep apnoea occurs when muscles in the neck collapse, shutting off breathing for ten seconds or more, and causing the sound of snoring as air vibrates against the soft tissue that stands in its way.
Once the brain realises breathing has stopped, it sends a signal for the airway muscles to contract again. This opens the airway and the patient wakes with a jolt.
This can happen about once every ten minutes or, in severe cases, every couple of minutes.
Very few people remember waking up at all because they fall asleep again within seconds, yet they feel exhausted during the day.
It has other health implications as, left untreated, sleep apnoea is linked to raised blood pressure and heart attacks.
Treatment involves wearing a mask over the nose and mouth during sleep to gently pump air into the airways, keeping them open.
The study, published in the Saudi Medical Journal looked at 200 patients, screening them for potential risk factors such as weight, neck circumference, blood pressure, and size of the tongue, tonsils and uvula- the tissue that hangs in the back of the throat.
The latest research found obese patients were almost 10 times more likely to report symptoms than non-obese patients.
The results found that 23 percent of participants were at risk, of which nearly 80 percent were male.
Although dentists cannot diagnose the disorder, they can spot an enlarged tongue or tonsils and recommend a patient to a sleep medicine specialist.
Prof Al-Jewair, in the UB School of Dental Medicine said: ‘Dentists see into their patient’s mouths more than physicians do and the signs are easy to identify.
‘We need to teach students about this condition before they get out in the field and educate dentists about the major role they play in identifying and treating patients with sleep-related disorders.’
Future research will expand the sample size to include various age groups and monitor participant sleep overnight to confirm the prevalence and severity.
