An Introduction to Sleep Apnea: Identifying a Problem
Posted on | October 9, 2009 | No Comments
Sleep apnea (also known as sleep apnoea) is a condition that affects a large proportion of people and can be highly unpleasant causing insomnia or broken sleep and their associated symptoms such as fatigue and tiredness. To identify any difficulties sleeping as sleep apnea however, you need to understand exact symptoms and causes; and to stand the best chance of coping with the condition you need to understand as much about it as possible. If you suffer from sleep apena it will also be useful to understand the procedures involved in diagnosis.
Sleep apnea is characterized by individuals pausing during their breathing while asleep. This ‘episode’ is known as an ‘apnea’ meaning ‘to breath’ in Greek which gives the condition its name. Normally an apnea lasts for more than a couple of breaths and can occur frequently throughout the night. To be classed as apnea then the pause in breathing must last at least 10 seconds – with this being the time between two breaths. Obviously this will often result in the individual waking up in the night or can damage the quality of their sleep which will give them the first indication of their possible apnea – however often the patient themselves will not be aware that it was a pause in breathing that caused the disturbance. In this case they will need to seek diagnosis for their sleep disorder from a professional.
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