Sleep Apnea Introduction

Sleep apnea (or sleep apnoea) is a medical condition that occurs due to irregularities in breathing while a person is sleeping. It is a secondary condition. The word apnea literally means 'without breath'. Persons with sleep apnea usually have a primary health condition - snoring. This means that people who snore can sometimes be diagnosed with sleep apnea.

While snoring is a generally harmless medical condition, apart from the high irritation quotient it has for the people who sleep near a snorer, sleep apnea is much more serious. The numbers don't reflect the seriousness of the disorder, though - roughly 2% of women and 4% of men have been found to suffer from sleep apnea.

Sleep apnea is a serious breathing disorder

Sleep apnea is a serious breathing disorder which has medical as well as social implications. Imagine a situation where you are living with a person who has sleep apnea, and neither of you are aware of the existence of the disorder. You both think that it is just plain old snoring. For you it is irritating to have to plug your ears every night to drown out the rumbling sound that your partner is making. For your partner, having to constantly wake up every now and then (you will read why he has to do so later) means that he has night after night of disturbed sleep, which in turns means irritable mornings and fatigued days. There is a possibility that your sexual life will be affected too. These are just the social implications.

The medical implications are far more serious. Recent studies have shown sleep apnea to be very strongly linked to hypertension. Hypertensive people have been found to have more episodes of sleep apnea in a single night than patients without hypertension. Besides, there is always the possibility of serious damage, even death, to the sleeper if there is cessation of breathing for an extended period of time.

Sleep apnea can be remedied

It is, however, not incurable. As this article will explain, there are ways and means, both surgical and non-surgical, to remedy the situation. All it needs is a little concern on the part of the person having the disorder and the relatives, and also awareness that the regular loud snores that characterize the sleeper's sleep state could be something more serious than just snoring.

Causes of Sleep Apnea >>