Is Sleep Apnea Treatable?

Sleep Apnea 
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Is  Sleep Apnea Treatable?

Very often, when our partner snores, we do not pay attention to it. But in many cases, severe snoring can be a sign of sleep apnea.

What is sleep apnea?

This is a disorder of breathing during sleep. Breathing stops for a short time, pauses are about 10-20 seconds, and  it can occur up to hundreds of times during sleep. As a result, there is a disorder in the rhythm of sleep.

Sleep apnea may become a chronic  and can provoke  diabetis, hypertension, heart disease, stroke and obesity. Fortunately, sleep apnea is curable and you can regain good sleep, controlling the symptoms, if they can be recognized.

There are 3 main types of sleep apnea:

 obstructive, central and mixed     

                                                              

Obstructive apnea - is the most common type and it occurs when the soft tissues in the back of the throat loosen itself during sleep. Thus, they are blocking the airways, which leads to loud snoring.      

                                                                       

Central apnea - includes the central nervous system and occurs when the brain fails to send impulses to the muscles that control breathing. An interesting fact is that people with central apnea seldom snore.

Mixed - a mix of obstructive and central apnea.

What happens during sleep apnea?

When the air, which enters during sleep, stops, blood oxygen levels getting low. The brain instantly reacts as disturbing your sleep with heavy breathing or a sound. If you suffer from obstructive apnea probably you won’t remember these interruptions of sleep, while if you have central apnea, you will realize what is happening for sure.

Signs and symptoms

The best way to identify sleep apnea is to urge your partner to record your sleep, giving the record to a medical specialist.

Here are the main signs and symptoms:

• chronic and severe snoring, feeling shortness of breath while  sleeping
• long pauses during the breathing
• daytime sleepiness, no matter how long you sleep
• restless sleep and frequent awakenings, feeling that you do not have enough breath
• hard to concentrate
• morning headaches
• waking with a dry mouth and sore throat 

It’s not necessary to suffer from sleep anapnea, when have these symptoms. There are similar symptoms in some types of allergies, hay fever, etc.

Sleep apnea in children

The most common is obstructive apnea in children, but it can be recognized quite difficult, because it can be accompanied by bedwetting, nightmares or excessive sweating. Also,changes in children behaviour during the day may occur.

For example:

• hyperactivity or lack of attention
• problems of growth
• poor marks in school
• breathing through the mouth 

Sleep Apnea, Causes And Risk Factors

People of any age and gender can be affected by this disease, but most of the risk factors are related to obstructive and central sleep apnea.

Obstructive sleep apnea - risk factors:

• overweight
• man
• relative who has this problem
• over 65 years
• smoker
• enlarged tonsils or adenoids
• allergies

Central sleep apnea - risk factors:

• men over 65 years
• if you suffer from cardiovascular disease
• stroke
• neurological disease

Treatment Of Sleep Apnea

If you can change your lifestyle, you can reduce the symptoms. The following tips can help:

• reduce weight, if above normal
• quit smoking
• avoid alcohol and sedatives before sleep
• avoid a heavy meal 2-3 hours before bedtime
• try to fall asleep at the same time every night

Attention! Sleep apnea is a serious disease. if you notice the above signs and symptoms, see a doctor immediately!