Sleep Apnea Syndrome - Handling a Challenging Condition
If you’re snoring loud enough to wake up yourself and your partner, then this could be a sign of sleep apnea syndrome. This sleep disorder occurs when the upper airway is blocked by the narrowing of the respiratory passages. However, sleep apnea can have a serious impact on your health if it’s left untreated. Besides daytime sleepiness, people with sleep apnea can also suffer from hypertension, depression and even heart disease. In this article, we’ll explain how this sleep disorder works and what you can do to get a better night’s rest.
Obstructive sleep apnea is the most common type of apnea and is due to an obstruction in the throat during sleep. The narrowing of the upper airway can be a result of several factors including inherent physical characteristics, excess weight, and alcohol consumption before sleep. Central sleep apnea is caused by a delay in the signal from the brain to breath. With both obstructive and central apnea you must wake up briefly to breathe, sometimes hundreds of times during the night. Usually there is no memory of these brief awakenings.
Because sufferers are asleep when they experience their symptoms, it’s usually the individual’s partner who spots the problem. Patients with sleep apnea syndrome often snore very loudly, wake up gasping, experience night sweats and make frequent trips to the bathroom during the night. Insomnia is also a common occurrence. Consequently, patients experience illnesses that accompany sleep deprivation like high blood pressure, depression, difficulty concentrating and reduced libido. If sleep apnea is not diagnosed and treated properly, then it can be life threatening.
A sleep test, called polysomnography is usually done in a sleep disorder center to diagnose sleep apnea. Mild cases of sleep apnea syndrome are usually treated by some behavioral changes like losing weight or sleeping on your side. There are also mouth devices that can help keep the airway open by bringing the jaw forward, elevating the soft palate or preventing the tongue from falling back into the airway and blocking breathing. Moderate to severe sleep apnea is usually treated with a CPAP mask and a CPAP machine. This machine blows air into your nose via a nose mask, keeping the airway open and unobstructed. Some people have facial deformities that may cause the sleep apnea. There are several other surgical apnea treatments like removing excess tissue to clear the airway, moving the tongue forward, and moving the upper and lower jaw forward.
Sleep apnea syndrome is a progressive condition that gets worse as you age, so it’s important to take it seriously. The symptoms of sleep apnea can be made worse by obesity and alcohol consumption, so lifestyle changes should supplement the treatments that your doctor recommends. Taking care of this sleep disorder will allow you to live a healthier - and more restful - life.
Sleep disorders can affect a person’s day to day living. They do not go through the right sleep cycles as well as their day to day lives start to be harmed from the deficiency of sleep that is. The conditions has the ability to be dangerous. A medical condition known as sleep apnea where the person actually stops breathing when. It is extremely dangerous and life threatening if not treated in the right way. You don’t have to keep suffering. Even in the event that snoring is a problem, there are instruments to help you in getting a good nights sleep and feel rested in the morning hours. Click here for more information:
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Tags: Sleep Apnea Syndrome, sleep disorders