Get Informed
Learn About Oral Appliance Therapy
Unlike other obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) therapies, Oral Appliance Therapy works comfortably inside your mouth to help keep your airway open while you sleep, so you can sleep freely and breathe regularly.
Getting Your Device
It’s A Simple Process
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Step 1: Talk with your doctor or an Alterna Sleep Expert.
Discuss Oral Appliance Therapy with one of our trained experts who will discuss your current treatment issues and help guide you through next steps.
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Step 2: Meet with a trained Oral Appliance Sleep Dentist
Meet with an Oral Appliance Trained Sleep Dentist. They verify your candidacy for therapy and do a simple digital impression to create your custom oral appliance.
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Step 3: Get your custom made device
The custom made device will be fitted and adjusted to your needs and a team of sleep specialist will support you in your journey to a better night sleep.
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Step 4: Complete a follow-up sleep study
The final step in the Oral Appliance therapy process is a follow up home sleep study to verify OAT is meeting your “Sleep Better” goals. Alterna Sleep will collaborate with your physician and recommends a yearly evaluation to ensure continued success.
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What Is Obstructive Sleep Apnea?
Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when your airway collapses during sleep, blocking airflow and causing you to repeatedly stop breathing throughout the night. This cycle can happen hundreds of times, preventing deep, restorative sleep. Left untreated, sleep apnea increases your risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. Many people don’t realize there are treatment options beyond CPAP machines.
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Treatment Options for Sleep Apnea
Your physician will recommend treatment based on how severe your condition is. At Alterna Sleep, we specialize in treating obstructive sleep apnea with oral appliance therapy, but here’s how it compares to other common treatments:
- CPAP Therapy: Continuous Positive Airway Pressure therapy is often prescribed as the first-line treatment for obstructive sleep apnea by many physicians. CPAP works by delivering pressurized air through a mask to keep the airway open during sleep. While CPAP is clinically effective, long-term success can be limited due to common challenges such as mask discomfort, bulky equipment, air leaks, noise, and feelings of claustrophobia—leading many patients to struggle with consistent use.
- Oral Appliance Therapy: Oral Appliance Therapy (OAT) is a clinically proven, evidence-based treatment for obstructive sleep apnea and is recognized as a first-line therapy for patients with mild to moderate sleep apnea, as well as a leading alternative for those who cannot tolerate CPAP. These custom-fitted oral devices—similar to a mouthguard—gently reposition the lower jaw forward to help keep the airway open during sleep.
- Lifestyle & Weight Management: Lifestyle changes such as weight loss, positional therapy (sleeping on your side), and overall health improvement may reduce the severity of sleep apnea in some patients. Newer weight-loss medications, including GLP-based therapies, can help decrease apnea.
A sleep apnea dentist can fit you with a custom device that keeps your airway open without the potential hassle of CPAP machines.
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How Our Oral Appliances Work
Oral appliances prevent your airway from collapsing. When you sleep, throat muscles relax, and your tongue can fall back and block your airway. A custom oral appliance holds your lower jaw slightly forward, keeping your tongue and soft tissues from blocking airflow. Our dental sleep specialists take digital impressions and determine the precise jaw position needed for your specific anatomy.
Your device is then fabricated specifically for your bite. This way of treating obstructive sleep apnea differs from online devices that use “boil and bite” methods, which don’t account for proper jaw positioning and can cause TMJ problems or tooth damage. We accept most major insurance plans, Medicare, and VA coverage, making professional oral appliance therapy accessible.
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Our Dental Sleep MedicineTeam
At Alterna Sleep, our team is made up of dentists with advanced training in dental sleep medicine through the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine (AADSM). Unlike general dentists who may occasionally provide oral appliances, our providers focus exclusively on treating sleep apnea with oral appliance therapy.
When you visit one of our Cincinnati, Dayton, or Columbus locations, you’ll meet with a specialist who takes digital impressions of your teeth and evaluates your jaw alignment, bite, and airway anatomy.
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What to Expect During Obstructive Sleep Apnea Treatment
At Alterna Sleep, we guide you through each step of oral appliance therapy and provide the education and support needed to help you succeed with your custom oral appliance.
- Insurance Review: Before your first appointment, we verify your insurance benefits and review any expected out-of-pocket costs with you.
- Initial Evaluation: We review your sleep study, discuss your symptoms and any prior experience with Continuous Positive Airway Pressure, answer your questions, and take digital impressions if oral appliance therapy is a good fit.
- Device Fitting: Once your oral appliance is ready, you’ll return for a fitting appointment where we ensure it fits properly and teach you how to use, clean, and care for it.
- Follow-Up Adjustments: We provide follow-up care and make adjustments as needed to improve comfort and effectiveness.
- Ongoing Monitoring: We coordinate with your physician for follow-up testing to confirm treatment is working and recommend periodic check-ins to keep your therapy on track.
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Insurance Makes Treatment Affordable
We accept most major medical insurance plans, Medicare, and VA coverage. Our team handles the pre-authorization process, so you know your treatment costs upfront, typically between $200 and $300. This is significantly less than the $3,000+ that general dentists often charge for the same treatment when billed as a cash service.
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Who Qualifies for Treatment
To be a candidate for oral appliance therapy, you must be 18 years or older and have a diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea from a physician. You don’t need to try CPAP first; oral appliances can be used as first-line therapy for many patients. If you’ve already tried CPAP and struggled with the mask or machine, you likely qualify for oral appliance therapy through your insurance.
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Schedule Your Consultation With Alterna Sleep Today
Call 888-973-5119 to find out if you qualify for obstructive sleep apnea treatment at our Blue Ash, Kettering, or Columbus office. We’ll verify your insurance and tell you exactly what you’ll pay. Our dental sleep specialists will take digital impressions, fit your custom device, and provide follow-up care to confirm it’s working.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Obstructive sleep apnea is a sleep disorder where your airway becomes blocked during sleep, causing repeated breathing interruptions throughout the night. These interruptions reduce oxygen levels and increase your risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke.
Oral appliance therapy treats sleep apnea by using a custom-fitted device that positions your lower jaw forward to keep your airway open while you sleep. Dental sleep specialists take digital impressions to fabricate the device specifically for your bite, preventing the airway collapse that causes breathing interruptions.
Sleep apnea can be treated without CPAP through oral appliance therapy, which is covered by most insurance plans for mild to moderate cases or as an alternative for CPAP-intolerant patients. Custom oral appliances typically cost $200-300 out of pocket with insurance.