What is Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is a medical disorder where you repeatedly stop breathing throughout the night. The number of these pauses can range anywhere from 40-100+ times per night. When you stop breathing, you temporarily wake up to start breathing again. You won’t remember these arousals in the morning, but they will prevent you from getting a good night’s sleep.
There are three types of sleep apnea:
- Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) - a physical obstruction blocks your attempts to breath (i.e. the back of your throat collapses, blocking your airway).
- Central sleep apnea (CSA) – your brain doesn’t send proper signals to muscles that control breathing.
- Complex sleep apnea – you experience symptoms associated with both OSA and CSA.
Over time, sleep deprivation caused by sleep apnea lead can to:
- Shortened life
- Lower quality life
- Other medical complications
Physiological risk factors for sleep apnea
Physiological risk factors are both controllable, and noncontrollable. Here are primary physiological risk factors that may influence the development or severity of OSA.
- Being overweight or obese
- Thick or large neck
- Smaller airways in your throat, nose or mouth.
- Enlarged tonsils
- Deviated septum
- Large tongue
Medical risk factors for sleep apnea
Medical risk factors are medical (i.e., diseases, conditions) and biological factors (e.g., genes) that influence OSA development or severity. They include the following:
- Having diabetes
- Genetics/family history
- Having certain medical conditions that cause sleep apnea (rare)
- Requiring certain medications for health reasons (such as pain relievers)
- Age/Sex (older men are most common demographic for sleep apnea)
- Having high blood pressure
- Chronic nasal congestion
Lifestyle risk factors for sleep apnea
Though medical and physiological risk factors can play a large role in developing OSA, lifestyle factors also can spark the onset of OSA. Some lifestyle factors linked to OSA include:
- Sleeping on your back
- Smoking
- Drinking excess alcohol
- Narcotic use (i.e., painkillers)
Fortunately, unlike medical and physiological risk factors, which may require medical intervention such as CPAP therapy, lifestyle factors may treated on their own by making changes like:
- Sleep position
- Smoking and drinking cessation
- Finding alternative medicines other than narcotics
Telltale symptoms of sleep apnea are [WebMD]:
- Bed partner hears you repeatedly stop breathing throughout night
- Loud, chronic snoring
- Waking up exhausted in the morning
- Waking up with headaches
- Excessive daytime sleepiness
- Waking up choking/gasping
- Mood disruptions, such as constant irritability, brain fog, etc.
- Waking up with dry mouth all the time
- Low stress management
- Struggles with depression or anxiety
- Reduced sex drive
Since you may be unaware that all of this is happening during the night, you may have to rely on your bed partner or a sleep recording to determine if you experience these symptoms.
Treatment for Sleep Apnea
The vast majority of people who suffer from sleep apnea treat it with CPAP therapy, which provides constant positive airway pressure (CPAP) using CPAP devices. Surgery is usually not needed.
For mild cases of sleep apnea, non-medical interventions may be recommended by your doctor.
If you live in Alaska and need to confirm a sleep apnea diagnosis, please contact us to get a sleep study (insurance coverage available).