Insomnia is a complex subject that is usually examined, diagnosed, and treated by a sleep specialist.  However, some of the treatment/management modalities of insomnia are very closely related to sleep-dentistry, and currently numerous patients are benefiting from properly educated and well-trained dentists in this field.  Dr. Kim is one of these dentists, and intends to briefly explain this subject in order to provide public awareness, and thus potentially benefit people who visit this website.

The most common complaints found with insomnia are:  1) difficulty falling asleep,  2) frequent awakening from sleep,  3) difficulty falling back to sleep after nocturnal awakening,  4) spontaneous early morning awakening.  By definition, these complaints must be associated with symptoms such as daytime sleepiness, fatigue, impaired concentration or memory, etc.  An important distinguishing fact is that an individual, who sleeps only 5 hours per night and has no symptoms, is not insomniac, is considered a ‘short sleeper’ and thus normal.

Among many causative sources of chronic insomnia, there are two prominent dental factors include: Sleep Breathing Disorders (snoring and sleep apnea) and Neuromuscular pain (TMJ disorder symptoms).  Consequently, one of the effective treatment modalities of insomnia is an ‘Airway Dilator’ (oral appliance) to keep the airway open and ‘Intra-oral Orthotic’  (splint) to relieve pain and muscle tension.  There also some helpful tips for better sleep:  Refer to 'Sleep Hygiene'.