Now Offering Sleep Apnea Services

Dr. Simmons and Dr. McCrea
OTHER PHOTOS

We have a renown Sleep Medicine expert and researcher in Sugar Land!

Jerald Simmons MD is a neurologist and sleep medicine physician. He organizes an annual Sleep Medicine conference in Houston. This year was the 20th meeting.

Dr. Simmons is one of the first and few physicians to advocate for dentists to be on the treatment team for sleep apnea. He has found that many of the signs of obstructive sleep apnea are dental and that people may go to the dentist before seeking out a sleep medicine specialist. He also notes that while a CPAP is the standard of care for many patients the CPAP is challenging for many people to use. For those patents who do not want to use a CPAP, involving a dentist who has knowledge of obstructive sleep apnea is critical.

Apparently breathing is important for a lot of bodily functions! Obstructive sleep apnea has been connected with many health issues beyond just being tired all the time. As we have learned, the connections to heart health, diabetes, mood, etc are clear.

I recently attended my second sleep dentistry/ medicine conference. This time I was fortunate enough to be a Guinea pig for the Apnodent oral appliance. Dr. Yousefian, inventor of the Apnodent appliance, fitted me with an Apnodent appliance as part of a demonstration during the conference. I have been wearing the appliance at night. The experience has been very informative. Dr. Ron Prehn, a noted TMD and now sleep medicine dentist, reviewed the steps for making appliances, and the follow up necessary for them. This has helped us come up with our protocol for thee appliances.

Jenn, Jennie, Nariah, and Roxana attended the conference with me. In addition to having a team of doctors, the in- office team is indispensable in helping each patient move forward with their treatment. Our team understands what we need to look for to help steer our patients to treatment they need.

We have engaged a billing firm to help us be able to bill this through medical insurance. Jenn has worked closely with them to understand the intricacies of using your medical insurance to get this necessary treatment.

If you have questions about sleep apnea, and would like to just talk about it, or get a screening please call us! We are very happy to meet with you to discuss your situation.