Dr. Carroll has practiced Advanced Dentistry for over 25 years with advanced training in neuromuscular dentistry from the Las Vegas Institute of Advanced Dental Studies (LVI). This is where she learned how to manage headaches, TMJ issues, full mouth reconstructions and sleep apnea appliances. A long time resident of Washington, she got her biology degree from the University of Washington and her dental degree from the University of Southern California in 1987.
It was at LVI that I learned the importance of muscle function in treating these conditions successfully. There are differences amongst us dentists in how we make sleep apnea appliances. My philosophy is centered on muscles. Happy face, head and neck muscles, means a happy patient while wearing the sleep appliance. A huge part of loving your appliance comes from muscle comfort.
A great deal of patients I treat with sleep apnea come to me because they cannot tolerate the CPAP face mask. In the beginning, the medical community was reluctant to refer patients who didnt want to wear a CPAP mask, perhaps because they werent sure the oral appliance would work. But they know better now. Many medical doctors give their newly diagnosed sleep apnea patients a choice now: a CPAP machine or an oral appliance.
What I love about the appliance is that it gives the patient more freedom of movement verses the CPAP machine. They can toss from one side to the next easily while wearing something in their mouth and are not strapped down with a mask. Getting up in the middle of the night is much easier and I think the appliance looks sexier than the face mask as well! They travel easier too.