SLEEP APNEA
All you need to know about sleep apnea
Are you so tired during the day that you have problems keeping your eyes open? Do you find yourself frequently waking up in the middle of the night short of breath? Is your partner also suffering from interrupted sleep because of the loud snoring, snorting and choking sounds you make? If you answered yes to all of these questions, you may have sleep apnea.
What is Sleep Apnea?
The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke defines sleep apnea as a common sleep disorder characterised by brief interruptions of breathing during sleep. These episodes usually last for 10 seconds or more, occur repeatedly throughout the night and prevent sufferers from reaching deep sleep.
Sleep apnea or sleep disordered breathing is a serious, potentially life-threatening condition that is far more prevalent than previously believed.
Types of Sleep Apnea
The most common type of sleep apnea is obstructive sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), the most common of sleeping disorders, is caused by repetitive obstruction of the upper airway This is caused by the collapsibility of the anatomy in the upper airway that blocks the passage of the air. In some people, OSA occurs when the throat and muscles and tongue relax during sleep. Another type of sleep apnea is central sleep apnea, which is caused by problems in the brain's control of the breathing function. Central sleep apnea caused by the failure of the respiratory center in the brain is much less common.
Who gets Obstructive Sleep Apnea?
OSA occurs in all age groups and both genders, but is more common in men. In middle age, there is some loss of muscle tone and with weight gain as the air may become narrower. Alcohol and sedatives may also contribute to a loss of muscle tone and a narrowing of the throat during sleep.
Identifying sleep apnea
The characteristic symptom of sleep apnoea is extreme sleepiness during the day. On top of that, headaches, trouble concentrating, irritability, forgetfulness, anxiety and depression can result from restless sleep. In addition, if your spouse tells you that you've been snoring loudly through the night, don't dismiss it. These may all be warning signs that you have sleep apnea. In general, sleep apnea is more likely to occur in men than women. It is also more common in people who are overweight or obese.
Available treatments for Obstructive Sleep Apnea
OSA treatment can be categorised on four levels of ascending complexity and
severity: -1. Behaviour Therapy; 2. Mechanical Assistance Therapy; 3. Surgery;
4. Medication. In each category, the influence of the physician on the behaviour of the patient and the treatment of the problem of OSA is significant.
Mechanical Assistance Therapy assists a patient's breathing through the use of a continuous Positive Airway Pressure pump (CPAP) worn during sleeping hours, often for many years. This category includes oral appliances which maintain an open air passageway such as the Titratable Medical Dental Sleep Appliances.
Sleep apnea increases accident risk
People with sleep apnea - a night-time breathing disorder that disrupts sleep - double the risk of being in a serious car crash, a Canadian study finds. "We were surprised, not only about how many sleep apnea patients' crashes involved personal injury, but that some patients had fairly mild sleep apnea and were still having serious crashes," said study author Dr. Alan Mulgrew, of the University of British Columbia Sleep Disorders Programme.
Researchers studied 800 people with sleep apnea and 800 without the condition.
They found that those with sleep apnea were twice as likely to be in a car crash, and three to five times more likely to be in a serious crash involving personal injury.
Over three years, the people with sleep apnea had a total of 250 crashes, compared with 123 among those without sleep apnea. Previous studies have identified a link between sleep apnea and increased risk for crashes, but this is the first study to examine the severity of crashes.
The sleep apnea patients' self-reported feelings of sleepiness were not linked to an increased risk of crashes, which suggests that the patients weren't aware of the potential driving hazards caused by sleep apnea.
