Sleep Apnea in Brief
Posted on | February 8, 2010 | No Comments
Sleep apnea is a chronic sleep disorder characterised by pauses in breathing, or a reduction to shallow breathing, while sleeping. These pauses, or episodes, are known as apneas can last for only a few seconds or for minutes at a time. An apnea is defined as the person stopping breathing for over 10 seconds, or the sleeper taking less than 25% of the normal breathing level. For a sleeper to be defined as having sleep apnea, the episodes should occur at least 15 times an hour. Episodes can occur more than 30 times an hour, following which normal breathing commences once again. These nights experiencing apneas are thought to occur 3 nights a week, or more, and at times can cause the sleeper to awaken. Apneas can also cause the sleeper to move out of deep sleep into lighter sleep. As a result of this change Sleep apnea often causes sleep disruption, and those with the condition can find themselves tired during the day. Although common in adults, it is rare for children to suffer from Sleep apnea. Often a person may be unaware that they suffer from the condition, and it is family or bed partners of the person who tend to highlight the problem.
Sleep Apnea – A Picture of the Symptoms
Posted on | February 1, 2010 | No Comments
Sleep apnea, a chronic sleeping disorder common in adults, is often unnoticed by an individual as episodes of the disorder occur most commonly while the individual is sleeping. Instead it is family members or bed partners of the individual who tend to discover the disorder. Symptoms and warning signs of Sleep apnea include:
Silences of breathing while sleeping - These pauses in breathing, or apneas, occur for at least 10 seconds, and can last as long as minutes. An apnea episode can stop breathing completely, or cause the sleeper to breathe shallowly. Apneas occur at least 15 times an hour, and often more than 30 times.
Gasping or Choking - After pauses in breath, the sleeper may then gasp or choke in a bid to get air back into their lungs.
Suddenly awakening - The sleeper may awaken suddenly, prompted by the brain to restore the balance of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood system. Although this may be forgotten by the morning, these awakenings can be disturbing to sleep quality.
Tiredness during the day - Sleep apnea can be disrupting to a person’s sleep, often causing them to awaken during the night. Even if not awakening the sleeper, the apneas can cause a disruptive switch from deep sleep into lighter sleep.
Other Sleeping Disorders and Red Herrings Part Two
Posted on | January 25, 2010 | No Comments
Sleep Paralysis – Sleep paralysis is an unusual phenomenon in which an individual wakes half way through their sleep unable to move with a ‘sense of dread’ and unable to move. This is caused by the paralysis that the body engages during dreams to prevent us from acting out our dreams failing to end upon waking and usually occurs when the individual is woken suddenly by a nightmare. This then leaves the sufferer lying fixed in one position for several minutes before they can move and return to sleep.
Insomnia – Insomnia can mean an individual has problems getting to sleep, but can also describe cases where the person has difficult maintaining sleep or the quality of their sleep. This can be caused by all manner of problems including stress which can cause a rush of adrenaline and other chemicals that trigger the ‘fight or flight response’ and so make it hard to sleep. Insomnia can be helped by keeping a diary of thoughts and concerns and by improving the conditions in which the patient sleeps. In some cases medication may be required.
Nocturia – Nocturia is the constant need to go to the toilet during the night, actually a very common problem that disrupts sleep for a lot of patients. This is often a psychosomatic problem though it can also be related to bladder problems. Patients should avoid drinking before bed and particularly diuretics.
Other Sleeping Disorders and Red Herrings Part One
Posted on | January 18, 2010 | No Comments
Sleep apnea is a sleeping disorder that causes the patient to stop breathing during the night. This then disrupts the sleep cycle causing the individual to lose sleep, though often they are unaware that they have woken at all during the night. With this being the case, the only observable symptom for the sufferer themselves is tiredness during the following day. For this reason, self diagnosis can be difficult and it’s easy to let apnea go untreated for many years – particularly if the individual lives alone and so has no one else to notice their behaviour during the night. The best way to identify apnea then could be by process of elimination and by recognising the symptoms of other possible causes; as many other sleep disorders and conditions can cause tiredness and broken sleep.
Depression – Clinical depression has among its symptoms extreme tiredness. The of tiredness experienced should be distinct from that associated with lack of sleep however, feeling more like a lack of energy and a predominance of lethargy rather than a strong desire for sleep. At the same time depressed patients will experience other symptoms of hopelessness, crying, lack of enthusiasm and sex drive and thoughts of suicide.
How Long Can Sleep Apnea Go Untreated Part Two
Posted on | January 11, 2010 | No Comments
This can also lead to problems at work, in relationships and finances. More pressingly such lack of attention can cause accidents, particularly when driving; and being tired when driving has also been said to be as serious as being drunk.
Poor sleep has also been linked to obesity, slow healing of wounds and depression; which themselves can lead to suicide or heart attack. Anything that disrupts sleeping patterns then should be considered a serious problem and should be treated by a professional.
The actual sleep apnea itself can also be a serious threat on its own. As one might expect there is of course a danger associated with cessation of breathing and in very rare cases sufferers can experience sudden death caused by a lack of breathing (this is more common in central sleep apnea where the patient receives no feedback to indicate that they’re not breathing but also in cases where the patient is morbidly obese). In babies this is a more serious concern and has been suggested as one possible cause of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome).
In conclusion then, sleep apnea can have many detrimental effects on the life and health of the patient. At the same time it may also prove a potentially lethal for certain groups. It should be treated as soon as possible if only to assess the danger, though can often go long periods of time undetected.
How Long Can Sleep Apnea Go Untreated Part One
Posted on | January 4, 2010 | No Comments
Sleep apnea is a condition that causes patients to stop breathing during the night. This causes individuals to experience broken sleep and to regularly wake throughout the night, though usually they are not conscious of this fact and simply find themselves feeling tired throughout the day.
As patients don’t necessarily recognise their condition it means that they can think of it as more of a nuisance than a serious problem. To what extent this is the case however will depend on the severity of the apnea and on the individual suffering. In some instances it certainly is a cause for alarm, and in all cases patients should see a doctor.
Firstly, extreme tiredness in itself can be a serious problem and can lead to other complications. For example lack of sleep can place stress on the immune system which leaves the sufferer vulnerable to viruses and infections and at greater risk of a heart attack or stroke.
Lack of sleep also has serious effects on the brain and cognitive function. Without adequate sleep an individual will suffer memory loss and difficulty with their attention and may also experience poor judgement when making decisions etc.
Homeopathic Remedies for Apnea
Posted on | December 28, 2009 | No Comments
Homeopathy is a form of alternative medicine which works differently to modern medicine. The central concept behind homeopathic remedies is that a remedy should cause the symptoms observed in the patient were the patient healthy. This then is supposed to help encourage the body to drive out these symptoms. For sleep apnea then the medication used will be known to obstruct the airways or to cause damage to the brain stem (the latter being the cause of central apnea).
Homeopaths will also take into account the other individual factors in each case however and will asses each instance of sleep apnea as unique and as part of the ‘living whole’. In homeopathy, only the symptoms are treated, but characteristics of the individual not related to the illness are often considered ‘symptoms’ in themselves. The exact form of medication used will vary then depending on the person using it.
Homeopathic medicines are then heavily diluted using a process called ‘succussion’. This process often results in not a single molecule of the active ingredient surviving which has lead many to claim that homeopathy is little more than a pseudoscience. Laboratory studies have meanwhile failed to show that homeopathic remedies are any more successful than placebos.
Diagnosing Your Sleep Apnea Part Two
Posted on | December 21, 2009 | No Comments
Sleep apnea can for example be quite dangerous in morbidly obese patients who should seek intervention, probably in the form of CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure). Those suffering from deformaties of the skull or a deviated septum will probably have only a mild form (unless this is the result of an injury). In such cases the individual should decide how severe their condition and whether they want to undergo surgery. For those suffering due to being slightly overweight or from having a large neck, it may be possible to alleviate the symptoms by changing the sleeping position to be more upright, or by lying on one side. From here the patient can then focus on getting exercise and improving their diet to help lose weight.
Central apnea however is much more difficult to treat and generally fairly severe. Treatments such as CPAP are unlikely to prove affective as the problem is not caused by restriction in the airways. Doctors will usually treat such cases with medication, though these have only been shown to be effective to an extent.
While it’s possible for patients to diagnose and prescribe for their own apnea to an extent, it is advisable that they seek the consultation of a medical professional who can advise the best course of action and look for other underlying problems.
Diagnosing Your Sleep Apnea Part One
Posted on | December 14, 2009 | No Comments
Acknowledging that you are suffering from sleep apnea can be difficult as patients are often unaware that they are waking up in the night, only noticing the tiredness that comes as a result. Once that’s done however, it’s important to realise that there are different forms and severities of apnea.
Sleep apnea comes in three forms, and recognising the form you’re suffering from is crucial to be able to correctly treat and ease the condition. Likewise realising the severity of the particular case can help find the most prudent cause of action.
The two main causes of sleep apnea are blockages in the nasal passage or trachea which make breathing difficult (obstructive sleep apnea); and malfunction in the brain that causes the patient to ‘forget’ to breath (central sleep apnea). The third type is simply a combination of these two effects (mixed sleep apnea).
Obstructive apnea describes the vast majority of cases and can be recognised by heavy snoring. Often the cause of obstructive apnea is obesity, though it can also be triggered by sinus problems or other blockages such as a deviated septum. The severity of this form of apnea will most likely be related to the severity of the problem triggering it.
Complex Apnea
Posted on | December 7, 2009 | No Comments
Complex apnea is another term for ‘mixed’ apnea, which describes apnea which is caused by a combination of the two main forms. These forms are ‘obstructive apnea’ – apnea caused by physical blockages in the airways; and ‘central apnea’ – apnea caused by malfunction in the brain that means it ‘forgets’ to breath and doesn’t respond to the fact that there is insufficient oxygen in the blood and too much carbon dioxide. It is also possible in some cases that prolonged cases of obstructive sleep apnea can lead to central apnea.
This combined form of apnea requires treatment on two fronts to address the two issues surrounding the problem. First of all the obstruction will be addressed, usually by advising a diet (obstructions are often caused by large necks in overweight patients) and changing sleeping position possibly using specially designed cushions. In more severe cases that don’t respond to home treatment, patients may require ‘CPAP’ (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) utilising a constant stream of pressurised air to keep the airways open.
To address the issues in the brain however is more complicated and no method has been shown to be completely successful. Some studies have suggested a link between central sleep apnea and iron deficiency making iron a popular supplement.