Breathe Easier, Sleep Better, Live Healthier
Sleep is essential to your overall health, yet conditions like sleep apnea can prevent your body from getting the rest it needs. At Markham Dental, we take a comprehensive, medically coordinated approach to diagnosing and managing sleep apnea and snoring.
Our team evaluates not just your symptoms, but the underlying causes, such as jaw position, tongue posture, and airway function, to create a personalized, effective treatment plan.
If you struggle with snoring, fatigue, or CPAP intolerance, our Panthera Sleep Apnea Oral Appliance and integrative therapies can help you achieve deeper, more restorative sleep.
Get your sleep health back to normal; contact us to schedule your sleep apnea consultation today.
Book AppointmentA Comfortable, Noninvasive Solution
For patients with mild to moderate sleep apnea or CPAP intolerance, the Panthera Sleep Apnea Oral Appliance offers a comfortable, easy-to-use solution.
Key benefits include:
- Noninvasive treatment: No bulky CPAP machines or hoses
- Custom-fit comfort: Each device is made to your exact bite for a secure, comfortable fit
- Improved sleep quality: Supports airway stability and reduces apneic episodes
- Snoring reduction: Helps minimize snoring for better rest for you and your partner
- Simple maintenance: Easy to clean, no complex setup
If you have been diagnosed with mild to moderate sleep apnea or struggle with CPAP compliance, the Panthera appliance can help restore restful sleep and improve your quality of life.
What Is Airway Dentistry?
Airway dentistry focuses on how breathing, sleep, jaw development, tongue posture, and oral function affect overall health. At Markham Dental, we look beyond teeth alone to evaluate how airway restriction may contribute to snoring, poor sleep, clenching, TMJ discomfort, fatigue, and other chronic concerns.
Our approach combines dental, functional, and sleep-focused therapies to help patients breathe better, sleep more deeply, and improve long-term wellness.
Why Breathing Matters
Healthy breathing plays a critical role in sleep quality, energy levels, concentration, growth, and overall health. When breathing is disrupted during sleep, the body may struggle to get enough oxygen and restorative rest.
Airway dysfunction can affect both children and adults and may contribute to:
- Snoring
- Daytime fatigue
- Mouth breathing
- Clenching and grinding
- TMJ discomfort
- Headaches
- Poor focus and brain fog
- Restless sleep
- Dry mouth
- Sleep apnea and UARS
Early evaluation can help identify the root cause and support healthier breathing patterns.
Signs Your Symptoms May Be Airway Related
Many people live with airway and sleep concerns without realizing that breathing may be the underlying cause. Common signs include:
- Loud snoring
- Chronic fatigue
- Difficulty concentrating
- Morning headaches
- Clenching or grinding
- TMJ pain
- Dry mouth
- Restless sleep
- Mouth breathing
- CPAP intolerance
- Dark circles under the eyes
- Hyperactivity or behavioural concerns in children
If these symptoms sound familiar, a comprehensive airway evaluation may help uncover the cause.
No Referral Needed: Begin Your Sleep Study
Sleep is essential for your overall health, yet conditions like sleep apnea and airway dysfunction can prevent your body from getting the restorative rest it needs. Through our partnership with Resolve Health, Markham Dental makes it easier to access convenient, at-home sleep testing and personalized care.
You can start your home sleep study today with no family doctor referral needed. Using testing options such as the WatchPAT™ One Home Sleep Test, our team can help evaluate your sleep patterns, breathing, and potential airway concerns from the comfort of your own home.
Once your results are reviewed, we create a personalized treatment plan that may include oral appliance therapy, CPAP support, airway-focused treatments, and myofunctional therapy. By combining dental expertise with sleep-focused care, we help children and adults achieve better breathing, improved sleep, and long-term wellness.
Our Comprehensive Approach to Sleep Apnea Care
At Markham Dental, sleep apnea treatment begins with a detailed airway, bite, and functional assessment. We look at factors such as:
- Jaw alignment and position
- Tongue posture and muscle function
- Bruxism or clenching habits
- Breathing patterns and airway restriction
When necessary, we coordinate sleep testing referrals through our trusted network of sleep clinics, ENTs, and respirologists. Once a diagnosis is confirmed, we design an evidence-based plan that may include:
- Custom oral appliances for sleep apnea or snoring
- Airway-focused orthodontic care to improve breathing
- Occlusal therapy for better jaw and bite balance
- Adjunctive therapies to address muscle tension and function
This multidisciplinary model provides continuity of care, medical oversight, and long-term results. Some patients may also experience Upper Airway Resistance Syndrome (UARS), a condition where restricted airflow disrupts sleep and contributes to fatigue, headaches, brain fog, and poor-quality rest, even without severe sleep apnea
Sleep Apnea vs. Upper Airway Resistance: Understanding Sleep Breathing Disorders
Not all sleep-related breathing concerns look the same. While obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) involves repeated pauses or reductions in breathing during sleep, Upper Airway Resistance Syndrome (UARS) occurs when increased airway resistance makes it harder to breathe, even without complete airway blockage.
Patients with UARS may experience symptoms such as:
- Chronic fatigue despite getting enough hours of sleep
- Morning headaches
- Brain fog and difficulty concentrating
- Restless sleep
- Mouth breathing
- Snoring or noisy breathing
At Markham Dental, we evaluate the full picture, including airway structure, jaw position, tongue function, breathing patterns, and sleep quality, to identify concerns that may affect your overall health
CPAP vs. Oral Appliance Therapy: Finding the Right Sleep Solution
CPAP therapy remains an effective treatment option for many patients with sleep apnea, but some people find it challenging to use consistently due to comfort, lifestyle, or tolerance concerns.
For eligible patients, oral appliance therapy can provide a comfortable alternative by gently repositioning the jaw to help maintain airway space during sleep. At Markham Dental, we support patients through a range of sleep solutions, including:
- CPAP support and compliance guidance
- Custom oral appliance therapy
- Orofacial myofunctional therapy
- Airway-focused orthodontic care
- Collaborative care with sleep physicians and healthcare providers
Our goal is to help you find a treatment approach that supports better sleep, improved breathing, and long-term success.
How Airway Dentistry, Myofunctional Therapy, and TMJ Care Work Together
Sleep breathing disorders are often influenced by more than one factor. The relationship between airway function, jaw development, tongue posture, and muscle balance plays an important role in breathing, sleep quality, and oral health.
By combining these therapies, our team can help address sleep-disordered breathing concerns beyond sleep apnea alone, supporting healthier breathing patterns for both children and adults.
We evaluate jaw structure, bite alignment, airway space, and oral development to identify factors that may contribute to restricted breathing.
OMT helps retrain the muscles of the tongue, lips, and face to support proper tongue posture, nasal breathing, swallowing patterns, and airway stability.
Jaw tension, clenching, and bite issues can contribute to discomfort and disrupted sleep. Addressing muscle function and jaw balance can support more comfortable breathing and overall function.
CPAP Support and Alternatives
CPAP therapy can be highly effective, but some patients struggle with comfort or compliance. At Markham Dental, we help patients explore supportive and alternative solutions that improve airway function and long-term comfort.
Depending on your needs, treatment may include:
- Oral appliance therapy
- Myofunctional therapy
- Airway-focused orthodontics
- Bite and jaw support
- Nasal breathing support
- Collaborative care with sleep physicians
Our goal is to help you achieve effective, sustainable sleep solutions that fit your lifestyle.
Myofunctional Therapy: Retraining the Way You Breathe and Sleep
Your tongue, lips, jaw, and facial muscles play an important role in breathing, swallowing, speech, facial development, and overall oral function. When these muscles do not work together properly, it can contribute to an Orofacial Myofunctional Disorder (OMD), affecting both children and adults.
At Markham Dental, myofunctional therapy focuses on retraining these muscles to establish healthier oral habits, improve breathing patterns, and support long-term treatment outcomes.
Poor tongue posture, mouth breathing, and improper swallowing patterns can place stress on the teeth, jaw, and airway. When left unaddressed, these issues may contribute to:
- Orthodontic relapse after braces or Invisalign® treatment
- Crowded teeth, open bites, and bite development concerns
- Mouth breathing and sleep-disordered breathing
- Snoring and poor sleep quality
- Jaw tension, clenching, grinding, and TMJ discomfort
- Speech or swallowing challenges
- Changes in facial growth and development in children
Orthodontic treatment focuses on creating proper tooth alignment, but the muscles surrounding your teeth and jaw also play an important role in maintaining those results.
Myofunctional therapy helps support orthodontic treatment by:
- Encouraging proper tongue resting posture
- Improving swallowing patterns
- Reducing habits that can push teeth out of alignment
- Supporting stable results after braces or Invisalign®
- Promoting healthier jaw and facial development
By addressing the functional causes behind misalignment, myofunctional therapy can help protect the long-term success of orthodontic treatment.
Healthy breathing starts with proper oral function. Mouth breathing, low tongue posture, and restricted nasal breathing can affect how the airway develops and functions. Myofunctional therapy uses targeted exercises to help:
- Strengthen tongue and facial muscles
- Encourage nasal breathing
- Improve tongue posture and airway stability
- Reduce mouth breathing and snoring
- Support treatment for sleep-disordered breathing and sleep apnea
When combined with airway dentistry, oral appliance therapy, or orthodontic treatment, myofunctional therapy helps address the functional factors that influence breathing and sleep.
The muscles involved in tongue posture, chewing, and swallowing are closely connected to jaw movement and stability. Muscle imbalances can contribute to increased tension, clenching, and discomfort around the TMJ.
Myofunctional therapy may help:
- Improve muscle coordination
- Reduce strain on the jaw muscles
- Support healthier chewing and swallowing patterns
- Complement TMJ treatment plans
Children:
- Open-mouth breathing
- Snoring or restless sleep
- Thumb sucking or prolonged pacifier use
- Speech difficulties
- Difficulty chewing or swallowing
- Facial growth or orthodontic concerns
- Trouble focusing or daytime fatigue
Adults:
- Chronic mouth breathing
- Snoring or poor sleep quality
- Mild sleep apnea or airway concerns
- Teeth clenching and grinding
- TMJ discomfort
- Orthodontic relapseSpeech or swallowing challenges
- Comprehensive Assessment: Our team evaluates tongue posture, breathing patterns, swallowing habits, facial muscle function, and oral health concerns.
- Personalized Treatment Plan: Your therapy plan includes targeted exercises designed around your specific needs and goals.
- Home Practice & Follow-Up: Regular follow-ups and at-home exercises help build healthier habits and create lasting improvements in breathing, function, and oral health.
Frequently Asked Myofunctional Therapy Questions
The length of your treatment plan will vary depending on your needs and how closely you follow your at-home practice plan. Typically, your treatment plan will span 3 to 6 months, with sessions every 1 to 2 weeks. We can provide more specific details based on your consultation and initial assessment.
Yes, myofunctional therapy can significantly reduce snoring and offer better quality sleep. The muscles involved in breathing and airway support are targeted and retrained through myofunctional therapy to improve breathing both while asleep and awake.
Myofunctional therapy can support orthodontic stability by addressing habits and muscle patterns that may contribute to teeth shifting after treatment.
Myofunctional therapy is not covered under standard dental or health insurance plans in Ontario. However, it may be covered by extended health benefits or health spending accounts. If you have any questions, please connect with our team.
You or your child might benefit from myofunctional therapy if you experience mouth breathing or difficulty breathing through your nose, tongue thrust or low tongue resting posture, clenching or grinding (bruxism), TMJ disorder, snoring, restless sleep, or challenges with speech or swallowing. We’re happy to discuss any of your concerns and determine if myofunctional therapy would benefit you.
Pediatric Airway and Growth
Airway development begins early. In children, mouth breathing, poor tongue posture, snoring, and sleep-disordered breathing can affect facial growth, sleep quality, behaviour, and focus.
Our team evaluates airway development, jaw growth, breathing patterns, and oral habits to identify concerns early and support healthy development through airway-focused care, orthodontics, and myofunctional therapy when appropriate. and improve your quality of life.
Take Control of Your Sleep and Health
Meet our Airway Team at Markham Dental, where dental, airway, and sleep-focused care come together. Through collaboration with sleep physicians and healthcare providers, we create personalized treatment plans designed to improve breathing, sleep quality, and overall wellness.
With comprehensive airway assessments, personalized oral appliances, and supportive therapies, we make treatment comfortable, effective, and noninvasive so you can enjoy deeper sleep, better focus, and improved long-term health.
Your comprehensive airway evaluation may include:
- Airway and breathing evaluation
- Tongue posture analysis
- Bite and jaw assessment
- TMJ screening
- Sleep symptom review
- Digital imaging and scans
- Functional muscle evaluation
- Home sleep study coordination when needed
Don’t let sleep apnea or snoring disrupt your nights or your well-being. Contact us to schedule your consultation today.
Book AppointmentFrequently Asked Questions
Airway dentistry focuses on how breathing, sleep, jaw development, and oral function affect overall health. It looks beyond teeth alone to identify issues that may contribute to snoring, sleep apnea, TMJ discomfort, clenching, fatigue, and poor-quality sleep.
Common symptoms include loud snoring, daytime fatigue, morning headaches, dry mouth, mouth breathing, restless sleep, clenching or grinding, TMJ discomfort, difficulty concentrating, and waking up feeling unrested.
No. At Markham Dental, you can begin your home sleep apnea testing process without a family doctor referral. Our team will guide you through testing and the next steps.
A home sleep apnea test (HSAT) is a convenient way to monitor your breathing and sleep patterns overnight from the comfort of your own home. The results help determine whether sleep apnea or other airway-related concerns may be affecting your sleep.
Oral appliance therapy uses a custom-made device worn during sleep to help keep the airway open. These appliances are commonly used to treat snoring, mild to moderate sleep apnea, and CPAP intolerance.
Yes. We offer CPAP support as well as alternative treatment options such as oral appliances, myofunctional therapy, airway-focused orthodontics, and collaborative care with sleep physicians.
nMyofunctional therapy is a series of exercises designed to improve tongue posture, nasal breathing, swallowing patterns, and facial muscle function. It can support better breathing, sleep, airway stability, and orthodontic outcomes.
Yes. Children with mouth breathing, snoring, restless sleep, speech concerns, or improper jaw development may benefit from airway evaluations and early intervention.
Treatment timelines vary depending on your diagnosis and treatment plan. Some therapies may provide improvement within weeks, while orthodontic or myofunctional treatment may take several months.
Coverage varies depending on your insurance provider and treatment type. Our team can help review your benefits and discuss available options during your consultation.
Specialty Servicesfor Every Smile
Sleep Better, Breathe Better
Start your home sleep study today with no family doctor referral needed. Through our partnership with Resolve Health, you can complete a convenient WatchPAT ONE home sleep test from the comfort of your home, followed by personalized care from our team.
From oral appliances and CPAP support to myofunctional therapy and airway-focused treatment, we provide comprehensive solutions for children and adults.
Train Your Muscles, Improve Your Sleep
Our myofunctional therapy programs retrain the tongue, lips, and facial muscles to support nasal breathing, reduce snoring, and improve airway function. We work with children and adults to build long-term habits that benefit sleep, oral posture, and facial development.
Straighten Teeth, Support Healthy Breathing
We offer comprehensive orthodontic care for all ages, including braces and Invisalign. Beyond aesthetics, our approach improves bite, jaw function, and airway health, helping both children and adults achieve a healthy, functional smile.
Relieve Jaw Discomfort and Improve Function
Our TMJ treatment addresses jaw discomfort, clenching, and muscle tension using tailored therapies. From bite adjustments to neuromodulator support, we focus on restoring jaw function and reducing discomfort for a better quality of life.
Relax Facial Muscles, Improve Comfort
Neuromodulator treatments like Jeuveau/Neuceiva can reduce tension in the jaw and face, relieve TMJ discomfort, treat migraines, and refine fine lines. Our team customizes treatments for both therapeutic and aesthetic benefits.
Replace Missing Teeth with Stability and Function
Our dental implant services, including all-on-4 implants, restore missing or damaged teeth for a secure, natural-feeling smile. Implants support bite function, improve chewing and speaking, and prevent bone loss. Our team provides personalized planning, guided surgery, and ongoing support for long-lasting results.
What SetsMarkham Dental Apart
We approach your care differently, with a focus on health, function, and long-term prevention. At Markham Dental, we are:
We look beyond your teeth, incorporating assessments like blood pressure, airway and tongue analysis, and sleep screening to better understand how your oral health connects to your overall well-being.
With denturists, prosthodontists, orthodontists, and general dentists working together, your care is coordinated, comprehensive, and tailored to your needs.
Every exam is designed to be in-depth and intentional, with advanced assessments included at no additional cost, so nothing is overlooked.
What Our PatientsAre Saying
Come Visit Usin Markham
You can find us on Woodbine Avenue, with plenty of parking available outside the clinic. We look forward to seeing you!
Our Address
- 8241 Woodbine Ave, Unit 17
- Markham, ON L3R 2P1
Contact Information
- Phone: (905) 470-0220
- Fax: 289-806-1423
- Email: info@markhamdentalhw.com
Hours of Operation
Markham Dental
- 8241 Woodbine Ave, Unit 17
- Markham, ON L3R 2P1
- Phone: (905) 470-0220
- Fax: 289-806-1423
- Email: info@markhamdentalhw.com