What is Sleep Apnea?
Sleep apnea is defined as the cessation of breathing during sleep. Apnea specialists generally agree that there are three different types of sleep apnea: obstructive, central, and mixed. Of these three, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is the most common; central sleep apnoea is rare; mixed sleep apnea is a combination of the previous two with treatment being the same as OSA.
Sleep Apnea is most simply defined as: a person experiencing repeated episodes during sleep where they are not breathing for at least 10 seconds at a time. This can occur hundreds of times a night and is usually associated with frequent arousing, which disrupts the sleep. Patients usually do not remember arousing because they do not completely wake.
Sleep Apnea is caused from the muscles of the upper airway relaxing too much and causing the upper airway to become completely blocked. This can cause the person to stop breathing, experiencing an “obstructive apnea.” This can last for ten seconds or more. It might happen frequently – even several hundred times each night. Sleep apnea is associated with many serious conditions. If it is not treated, sleep apnea is a contributing factor in stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and depression.
Sleep Apnea is a potentially serious and life threatening disorder that requires treatment. This disorder is characterized by episodes of stopped breathing and loud snoring during sleep. This is caused by a narrowing of the muscles of the upper part of the throat that would usually keep the passage open to allow air to flow into the lungs. Since there is a narrowing, during sleep, relaxation of the muscles causes the passage to close which prevents air from going into the lungs.
