Sleep Apnea Treatment

Sleep Apnea

Sleep apnea refers to a serious sleeping disorder that affects breathing during sleep. Individuals who suffer from sleep apnea stop breathing multiple times during sleep. More common in men than women, sleep apnea generally refers to the stopping or severe reduction of breathing for more than 10 seconds at a time. Although sleep apnea is more prevalent in people who are middle aged or older, it can also occur with children. Sleep apnea can lead to complications such as heart failure, stroke, high blood pressure, insomnia and even death. The two types of sleep apnea are Obstructive Sleep Apnea and the less common Central Sleep Apnea.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Obstructive sleep apnea refers to the cessation of breathing during sleep due to an obstruction of the airways.  In most cases, this is due to the soft tissues of the throat collapsing during sleep. Obstructive sleep apnea can affect anyone, but is more prevalent in men. Some causes of obstructive sleep apnea are:

•    enlarged tonsils
•    underdeveloped pharyngeal muscles
•    congestion
•    abnormally small airways
•    deviated septum
•    tongue retraction (partially swallowing the tongue during sleep)
•    smoking
•    respiratory infection
•    obesity

Central Sleep Apnea

Central sleep apnea refers to the cessation of breathing during sleep due to signals from the brain not reaching the muscles that control breathing.  Although not as common, central sleep apnea can also result in heart failure, high blood pressure and even death. In some cases central sleep apnea is a symptom of some of those conditions; this is called secondary sleep apnea. Some causes of secondary sleep apnea are:

•    heart failure
•    medications
•    heart defects
•    strokes

Sleep Apnea Symptoms

The symptoms of sleep apnea can range from undetectable to severe. The longer sleep apnea goes undiagnosed or treated, the more potentially serious the symptoms. Some immediate symptoms of sleep apnea are:

•    overall fatigue during the day
•    inability to get to sleep (insomnia)
•    low attention span
•    anxiety
•    irritability and mood swings
•    headaches
•    difficulty concentrating

The symptoms above are general mild symptoms that are normally attributed to lack of sleep. Therefore, sleep apnea can go undiagnosed for weeks, months and even years. If sleep apnea goes untreated for a prolonged amount of time, serious complications and symptoms can arise. Some examples follow:

•    hypertension or high blood pressure
•    heart attack or heart failure
•    pulmonary hypertension (high blood pressure in the lungs blood vessels)
•    arrhythmia (irregular heart beat)
•    death

Sleep Apnea Treatment

There are numerous steps you can take to treat your sleep apnea at home. However, always consult a physician to get a full diagnosis and other treatment options and ideas. The list below shows some steps you can take at home to treat sleep apnea:

•    avoid alcohol before sleep
•    try sleep on your side or stomach (not your back)
•    avoid smoking
•    lose weight
•    avoid exercise before sleeping
•    avoid sleeping pills
•    keep your head elevated

In more severe cases, other methods may be used to treat sleep apnea such as surgery (if the sleep apnea is caused by a deviated septum, enlarged tonsils or soft tissue ion the throat) or by wearing special dental devices that open up the airways.  Other more advanced methods are now becoming available such as the Pillar Palatal Implant, a 10 minute procedure that firms the soft palate and alleviates snoring and some forms of obstructive sleep apnea.