Sleep Apnea

A Silent Threat

Over 12 million Americans are afflicted with a very common sleep disorder known as sleep apnea. However, many of them do not know that they have it, how it affects their daily lives or the risk they place themselves in by leaving it untreated. Learn the facts about sleep apnea and how you can treat it below.

What is Sleep Apnea?

Sleep apnea is a common, but serious sleep disorder that interrupts a person's breathing during sleep. People with untreated sleep apnea can stop breathing hundreds of times during their sleep, for durations as long as a minute or more. There are two types of sleep apnea:

Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)

This is the more common form of apnea. It is caused by an over-relaxation of the throat, in which soft tissue in the back of the throat collapses during sleep, blocking the airway.

Central Sleep Apnea

This form of sleep apnea is not caused by a blockage of the airway, but by a failure of the brain to send signals to the muscles that control one's breathing.

Symptoms of Sleep Apnea

Many symptoms of sleep apnea can seem like normal, everyday occurrences. However, none of these symptoms should ever be over-looked.

Frequent interruptions of sleep due to awakening for no apparent reason
Waking up with a sore/dry throat
Occasionally waking up with a gasp or choking sensation
Constant or excessive daytime sleepiness
Morning headaches
Loud, endless snoring
Trouble concentrating
Irritability, forgetfulness and/or mood/behavior changes
Decreased sex drive
Anxiety and depression

Health Risks Associated with Sleep Apnea

If left untreated, the sleep and oxygen deprivation caused by sleep apnea can create major health issues including:

Cardiovascular disease

Irregular heart beat
Heart attacks
Heart failure

Hypertension/High blood pressure
Stroke
Diabetes
Weight gain leading to obesity

Treatment for Sleep Apnea

Some mild cases of sleep apnea can be treated with conservative methods such as weight loss, quitting smoking, changing sleep positions to improve breathing and avoiding alcohol/sleeping pills as sleep aids. However, for many cases of sleep apnea, home medical equipment is needed to properly treat the condition. Two of the most popular machines used to help sleep apnea sufferers are:

Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) Machine

Most commonly prescribed by doctors to sleep apnea patients, this machine provides a constant flow of air through a mask that is worn over the nose and/or mouth in order to keep a patient's airway passage open during sleep.
Click play to view a demonstration of how a CPAP machine works.

Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure (BiPAP) Machine

Works like a CPAP machine, except provides two levels of air pressure: one pressure for inhalation, and a lower pressure for exhalation.
Read about a woman whose adventurous lifestyle was sidelined by her sleep apnea, and how her BiPAP machine helped her get back out to experiencing life.

Both machines can be fitted with additional accessories to provide better comfort for the patient.