Sleep apnea informations

Sleep apnea is a serious disorder that causes your breathing to stop repeatedly while you sleep. These breathing pauses or "apneas" usually last 10 to 30 seconds and can happen many times throughout the night.

Untreated sleep apnea can lead to serious health problems, accidents, and premature death. Thankfully, sleep apnea can be treated effectively.

The most common type of sleep apnea is obstructive sleep apnea, which happens when the upper airway gets blocked during sleep. Most often, the blockage happens when the soft tissue in the back of the throat collapses and closes during sleep. Relaxed throat muscles, a narrow airway, a large tongue or extra fatty tissue in the throat can also block the airway.

Central apnea and mixed apnea are other types of sleep apnea, but are less frequent. In central sleep apnea the part of the brain that controls breathing doesn't work properly.

Untreated sleep apnea can cause serious health problems:

Excessive daytime sleepiness
Decreased intellectual functioning
Memory loss
Depression
Hypertension (high blood pressure)
Heart problems - can lead to heart attacks and strokes

The health problems caused by sleep apnea can lead to loss of employment, marriage break-up. Untreated sleep apnea is also associated with some permanent memory loss and dementia, especially in the elderly. Because of the daytime sleepiness it causes, sleep apnea is also responsible for car accidents and industrial accidents.

During deep sleep, your heart rate and blood pressure drop. This allows your heart to rest. The pattern of snoring pauses in breathing and then gasping or choking for air that happen with sleep apnea prevent you from getting the kind of restful, deep sleep your body needs. This can result in high blood pressure.

When your blood pressure is high, your heart must work too hard. This can lead to heart attack or stroke. More than half of people with untreated sleep apnea have high blood pressure. If sleep apnea isn't treated for a long time, your heart begins to wear out because it has to pump harder to cope with the lack of oxygen caused by repeated pauses in breathing.

Many people with sleep apnea don't know they have it. They may not recognize the signs and symptoms of sleep apnea. People with sleep apnea commonly seek help because of daytime sleepiness, or snoring and pauses in breathing noted by their bed partner.

Sleep apnea is sometimes called the "snoring disease" because snoring is one of the symptoms. But snoring by itself doesn't necessarily mean that you have sleep apnea. It is true that loud snoring is common in people with this disorder, but there's a big difference between simple snoring and sleep apnea. Your doctor can diagnose the cause of snoring and determine whether it's caused by sleep apnea or by something else.

One in five adults has at least mild sleep apnea and one in fifteen adults have at least moderate sleep apnea. Kids can also get sleep apnea; obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) affects 1-3% of children.

Men, women and children of all ages can have sleep apnea. Your risk is higher if you:

Smoke, drink alcohol, are overweight, have a large tongue, have a narrow throat, have large adenoids and tonsils (in children).

If you feel you have symptoms possibly related to sleep apnea, consult your physician who will orient you towards specialized resources (lung experts, ear-nose-and-throat specialists, sleep clinics (www.apnair.com, www.mayoclinic.com/health/sleep/SL99999)).

If it is confirmed that you suffer from sleep apnea, it is possible that only some changes to your life will have an effect on diminishing the symptoms. It is also possible that certain treatments be proposed to you; such as the CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure). The CPAP is a device, sort of a pump, that pushes air into a hose linked to a mask you are wearing during sleep time. Different types of masks exist: some will cover the nose only, others will cover the nose and mouth, only the nostrils or the entire face. There is a large choice of masks and CPAP machines on the market. It is important to get good advice from professionals to choose the equipment that best suits you (after all, you will be wearing it for one third of your life...).

The Canadian Lung Association (www.lung.ca) defines the CPAP as follows :

The treatment of choice at this time for obstructive sleep apnea is continuous positive airway pressure (C.P.A.P.). C.P.A.P. works by delivering a steady stream of air through a special mask to keep your airway open during sleep. A machine gently blows pressurized room air to the mask through a flexible tube.

The constant flow of air pressure from the mask prevents your airway from collapsing when you breathe in. The C.P.A.P. unit pressure is set specific to each person's needs to prevent collapse of the airway or throat. The pressure varies according to how severe your sleep apnea is and how much pressure is needed to prevent collapse.

Although most doctors consider C.P.A.P. the best treatment some people find it difficult to accept. C.P.A.P. is not an easy therapy to use in the beginning and people tend to give up if they do not notice a big change right away. The most common reasons for people to stop CPAP treatment are: Mask fit problem, sores/redness around the nose or dry, stuffy nose.

C.P.A.P. keeps the throat open and prevents snoring and apnea. It is a treatment and not a cure so you will feel better only as long as you use it.

If you stop using the C.P.A.P. your symptoms will return and your risk for serious health problems will increase. See your doctor if you are having problems using C.P.A.P.