Sleep Apnea Treatments

Does sleep apnea go away? The answer is no, although it is a common question among people with a sleep apnea diagnosis. While there is no cure for this chronic condition, there are treatments and lifestyle changes that can reduce your sleep apnea symptoms.

Losing weight, for example, can lower the risk of sleep apnea due to obesity. Or, surgeries including tonsillectomy can be done in both children and adults, with some success noted particularly when treating kids.

This article will help you to understand the underlying causes of sleep apnea and the changes you can make to reduce your risk factors. It also discusses what may happen if you leave sleep apnea untreated and what that means for a long-term prognosis.

Is There a Cure for Sleep Apnea?

Sleep apnea in children can be successfully and definitively treated. In adults, however, sleep apnea does not usually go away.

Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when any part of the airway from the tip of the nose to the lungs collapses during sleep and disrupts breathing. As such, it is often due to a person’s underlying anatomy. Human anatomy tends to remain fixed, especially after adolescence has ended.

Obesity is a major risk factor for sleep apnea, but people who are not overweight or obese can have sleep apnea, and its causes may be even more difficult to treat.

A deviated nasal septum or enlarged turbinates in the nose may disrupt airflow. A floppy soft palate, big tonsils or adenoids, or a large tongue may block the passage at the throat.

Chronic snoring leads to vibration of the airway and damage. This may contribute to swelling that makes the airway narrow. Nerve receptors may become less responsive, and the muscles may not be able to keep sufficient tone to support the airway.

Other causes that contribute to the development of sleep apnea may include:

• Weight gain, especially when it leads to a large neck
• Sleeping on your back, which allows the tongue to fall back into the airway
• The use of alcohol, especially in the few hours prior to sleep

Because these factors contribute to structural changes in the airway anatomy, they lead to a chronic condition that, in most cases, can be treated but not cured.

Sleep Apnea Treatments

In many cases, there is no permanent fix for sleep apnea, but treatment can reduce the risk of complications and premature death. You may also be able to improve your symptoms through simple lifestyle changes like losing weight and increasing your daily activity.

Machines

For many people, the standard of care for sleep apnea is continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP). This constant flow of air keeps the airway open and prevents its collapse. Much like a pair of glasses, it only works when it is used, but it can be highly effective for those who can tolerate it.

Lifestyle Changes

Obesity is the primary risk factor for obstructive sleep apnea, and losing weight can improve sleep apnea symptoms. Research has found that obese people who lose weight will even reduce their tongue size, thereby reducing this airway complication.

Breathing exercises may improve your airway muscle tone. Some studies report positive effects of circular breathing techniques used to play the didgeridoo, as well as tongue-strengthening exercises called myofunctional therapy. However, results are mixed and more research is needed.

Additional lifestyle changes can also help improve sleep apnea:

• Quit smoking.
• Become more active through exercise.
• Avoid eating large meals right before bedtime.
• Avoid alcohol and/or caffeine before bedtime.
• Don't take sleeping pills or other sedating medications.
• Establish a regular sleeping schedule and try to stick to it.
• Sleep on your side, or raise your head off the bed to 30 to 45 degrees.

Medication

Keeping the nasal passages open by treating allergies with nasal steroids can also be helpful. Medications that may offer benefits include:

• Nasonex (mometasone)
• Flonase (fluticasone)
• Rhinocort (budesonide)

Surgery

The most successful surgical treatment is jaw advancement surgery. This procedure, also called maxillo-mandibular advancement, can be highly effective, resolving sleep apnea in upwards of 80% of people.

It is a major surgery used to restructure the jawbones, fix them in place (typically with titanium screws and plates), and change the facial profile to improve the airway.

Other surgeries can also be used to change the anatomy, but, in general, these procedures are less effective. These options include:

• Surgery on the soft palate, such as uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP)
• Septoplasty, to repair a deviated septum
• Radiofrequency ablation of the nasal turbinates, to relieve nasal congestion and obstruction
• Tongue surgery, with movement of the tongue anchors (called hyoid advancement)
  

In Children

In children, these treatment options often lead to a permanent resolution of symptoms:

• The removal of tonsils and adenoids
• Treatment for allergies
• Orthodontic therapy to expand the hard palate, called rapid maxillary expansion
  

Summary

There is no real cure for sleep apnea, although surgical treatment in children (whose bodies are still growing) often delivers positive results.

Because adults live with permanent airway anatomy, the changes caused by sleep apnea require other therapies and interventions. Medication, surgery, and CPAP treatment are all options. There also are a number of lifestyle changes, like losing weight, that can improve sleep apnea symptoms.

Contact your healthcare provider about symptoms if you have sleep apnea concerns.

A Word From Verywell

A sleep specialist is trained to assess and diagnose obstructive sleep apnea and other sleep-related disorders. Your healthcare provider can help you to find one and to learn more about sleep apnea treatment options.