I have obstructive sleep apnea. My doctor told me my tongue is too big for my mouth and is causing the obstruction when I sleep. Can this be a result of having four teeth removed when I had braces as a teen?

Yes. Extracting four permanent teeth does reduce the volume of your mouth. In other words, your tongue had to move toward the back of the throat, reducing the airway space. The extractions can be responsible for you now having sleep apnea. Instead of extracting teeth to relieve crowding, I widen the arch of the mouth using the high-tech H4 system of braces. This increases the volume of the mouth and decreases the chances of obstructive sleep apnea. If you want to correct crowding problems without extractions, call 1-800-4BRACES for your free consultation.