Three Types of Sleep Apnea Part 2
Posted on | March 1, 2010 | No Comments
Central Sleep Apnea: Common in both premature infants and adults with cerebrovascular or heart disease, this type of Sleep apnea is caused by the sleeper’s brain not signalling the body to breathe. Both premature infants and adults with heart disease will have higher levels of carbon dioxide in the blood, causing the brain to slow the rate of breathing and carbon dioxide levels to drop. After a while the carbon dioxide levels rise again and the body’s breathing rate becomes more rapid, but the brain adjusts slowly to this change and signals for the rapid breathing to increase. This causes the carbon dioxide level to drop, and the body to stop breathing altogether or slow down. Breathing at a normal rate begins again when the carbon dioxide levels rise. This pattern of breathing, known as Cheyne-Stokes breathing, involves cycles of faster breathing leading to apneas and slower breathing. Although particularly dangerous for premature infants, who are monitored for apneas, the disorder is normally outgrown in the development process.
Mixed Sleep Apnea: Individuals with a long-term form of obstructive sleep apnea are occasionally found to develop central sleep apnea. This can be caused by a malfunction of the body’s carbon dioxide feedback systems, caused by heart failure.
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