Do You Have Sleep Apnea? Call Dr. Jay Nelson Of Nelson Dentistry!

There are a lot of good dentists out there, but few combine the ability to maintain your oral health and improve your ability to sleep without snoring like Dr. Jay Nelson, D.M.D (Doctor of Dental Medicine) and his Nelson Dentistry & Dental Sleep Medicine.

Dr. Nelson’s practice, located in the Highland Oaks Medical Center off S.R. 54 (west of Livingston Rd.) provides an extensive list of services that has grown over his 35-year career, as dental research and technology have created more patient options and his expertise to deliver them has grown.

Building on what he learned while earning his D.M.D. (Doctor of Medical Dentistry) degree at the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine in Philadelphia, Dr. Nelson earned advanced certifications from professional organizations such as the Academy of Laser Dentistry (ALD), Academy of Comprehensive Esthetics (ACE) and the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine (AADSM). Dr. Nelson says his practice is the only AADSM-accredited facility in Florida.

Nelson Dentistry is a full-service dental practice, offering procedures that can help you have attractive, healthy teeth that are capable of chewing and grinding food. General dental services include teeth cleanings, fillings, root canals, periodontal therapy, dentures, veneers, whitening and even full-mouth reconstruction.

Dr. Nelson says that just because someone spends eight hours a night in sleep mode, it doesn’t guarantee their body is getting the rest it needs to be recharged for the waking hours to follow. Dental sleep medicine is a practice area that addresses some of the health issues affecting sleep quality, such as obstructive sleep apnea (a condition whereby sleep-time breathing is interrupted, depriving the body of a steady flow of oxygen), and it’s one way Dr. Nelson says he can deliver a higher level of patient benefit.

According to a study published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, the official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, “moderate-to-severe sleep apnea is independently associated with a large increased risk of all-cause mortality, incident stroke, and cancer incidence and mortality.”

“In general dentistry, we’re saving teeth and helping people get healthier,” Dr. Nelson says. “With dental sleep medicine, we’re saving lives.”

Dental sleep medicine uses FDA-approved oral appliance technology and dental expertise to relieve sleep-disturbing problems like snoring and obstructive sleep apnea. Dr. Nelson says the severity is wide-ranging in terms of how often a sleeper’s breathing pauses.

“People with sleep apnea stop breathing in their sleep from five to one hundred times an hour,” he says.

According to Dr. Nelson, obstructive sleep apnea can contribute to developing high blood pressure and heart disease and can increase your risk of having a stroke. He also says that besides the risk of chronic disease, people who don’t get enough quality sleep are less alert and increase their risk of injury from car or work-related accidents.

Snoring is sometimes a symptom of or a precursor to obstructive sleep apnea and can disturb the sleep of others. Dr. Nelson says dental sleep medicine offers a way to help bring relief not only to the person snoring, but also those who are sleeping within hearing distance of the noise.

“Someone snoring doesn’t just affect them, it affects their bed partner,” Dr. Nelson says. “We’re saving marriages, allowing couples to sleep in the same bed.”

Obstructive sleep apnea is a medical condition that requires a physician’s diagnosis. Patients become candidates for treatment by American Board of Sleep Medicine-certified Sleep Medicine specialists after undergoing an evaluation at a sleep testing center. “There are two ways a patient might enter our (dental sleep medicine) practice,” says Dr. Nelson. “One is referral by a physician, or we sometimes have patients (with other issues) and refer them for a sleep study, where a sleep medicine physician would evaluate them.”

The standard treatment for obstructive sleep apnea has been to pump a continuous stream of air into a patient’s nose or mouth while sleeping. This method — using a Continuous Positive Air Pressure (CPAP) system — is effective but many people find the CPAPs ugly and uncomfortable to use, Dr. Nelson says, resulting a high failure rate usually due to patient non-compliance.

Instead of the unwieldy, scary-looking CPAP machine, today’s dental sleep medicine uses an FDA approved oral appliance that is adjusted to position the tongue and jaw to allow greater airflow to the lungs while sleeping. Treatment effectiveness is evaluated and adjustments are made, if necessary.

“Many people find the oral appliances more comfortable than the CPAP,” Dr. Nelson says. “People with mild to moderate sleep apnea often prefer an oral appliance to using a CPAP.”

Dental sleep medicine professionals have only been using oral appliances to treat obstructive sleep apnea for about 10 years and Dr. Nelson has been doing so for seven years. It is another dimension to his practice, which has served the New Tampa and Wesley Chapel communities from his Lutz office since 1987.

“It’s just something different, to help people in a different way than I usually do,” says Dr. Nelson, who is a New Tampa resident.

Whether he is easing the pain and discomfort of a patient with a dental cavity, or helping someone get more restful sleep, Dr. Nelson abides by the same guiding principle: “We treat everyone as an individual, with respect, and do the best we can.”

A survey of online Google reviews suggests Dr. Nelson’s dental practice has a lot of satisfied patients, with 38 reviews unanimously giving the office 5 out of 5 stars.

“Dr. Nelson and his staff are great,” wrote patient Traci Jurek. “I have been going there for over 10 years and really appreciate the professional and personal way they treat you.”

Joyce Miguel echoes those sentiments: “Dr Nelson and his entire team know how to create a positive experience for their patients,” Miguel writes. “ Their caring and compassion are evident in all they do.”

And, sleep apnea treatment reviewer Rosemarie Rohatgi writes, “Dr. Jay Nelson is a genius at helping people solve their sleep problems. Not only that, he is absolutely tenacious in making sure you get what you need. I highly recommend him.”

Nelson Dentistry also received 5 out of 5 stars from 148 reviewers at HealthGrades.com, which scores medical practitioners on items ranging from level of trust to waiting times.