Sleep Apnea

The word 'apnea' is a Greek word, which means 'without breath'. The disorder literally means that a person with sleep apnea actually ceases to breathe for a couple of seconds during his sleep. In adults, this may be for around 10 seconds and in case of children it could be two and half breaths.

This can occur approximately 10 - 50 or more times in both cases during the sleep. The breathing pauses resulting in breathlessness and wakefulness and the brain is triggered to wake up, if just momentarily to catch a breath.

With every apnea, the oxygen level in the blood drops. Sometimes the patient wakes up abruptly at night because they have difficulty in breathing, but more commonly the patient is not aware that they have stopped breathing during the night. A patient may remember having a restless night's sleep but may not recall waking up continuously through the night.

People with sleep apnea move out of deep sleep into light sleep many times. This phenomenon which the patient goes through all throughout during the night results in sleeplessness. This is mostly noticed by the person who sleeps next to the person having sleep apnea. The partner is usually the first to notice that the person next to them is having difficulty in breathing and is gasping for breath during the night while sleeping.

Today, sleep apnea is considered to be a very common disorder affecting the lives of many men, women and children all over the world. America itself has more that 18 million people suffering from this disorder.

Types of Sleep Apnea

Research show that there are three different kinds of sleep apnea

1. Obstructive Apnea - this is the most common apnea whereby enough air cannot flow into the lungs even from the mouth or the nose, preventing a person from breathing.
2. Central Apnea - this occurs when the brain does not send the required signals to the breathing muscles which in turn hinder the breathing process.
3. Mixed Apnea - this is a combination of both Obstructive and Central Apnea.

Why Sleep Apnea?

Many people with sleep apnea have the following in common:

1. Overweight
2. Thick neck circumference
3. Being a man
4. Old Age
5. Hypertension
6. Hereditary, a family history of sleep apnea
7. Smoking
8. Alcohol and sedatives
9. High Altitude

Effects of Sleep Apnea

Some of the effects of sleep apnea are:

1. Excessive sleepiness during the daytime
2. Loud snoring
3. Breathing difficulty during sleep
4. Shortness of breath
5. Waking up from sleep with dry mouth or sore throat
6. Sudden headaches in the morning
7. Insomnia
8. Depression
9. Smoking
10. Use of sedatives
11. Impotence
12. In children in could result in hyperactivity

If untreated, sleep apnea could lead the patient into more complications. The patient would suffer from being sleepy during odd hours of the day. This in turn may cause hazards to them such as falling asleep while driving and at their work as well as at home.

Moreover, sleep apnea might also lead to coronary heart diseases or even a stroke. So it is advisable to visit a doctor if you have even a few of the symptoms of sleep apnea. If treated at the right time, it could change one's life drastically.