Thank you for choosing MedPrime Sleep Center
Sleep is as important to our health as the air we breathe or the food we eat. Lack of sleep can affect your health, putting you at risk for health problems. It can also take a toll on your relationships, productivity at work and Worst of all, your safety, as well as the safety of those around you. Sleep apnea is a serious sleep disorder where an individual’s breathing is briefly interrupted during sleeping. The most common form of sleep apnea is Obstruction Sleep Apnea (OSA). Sleep apnea only occurs while we are sleeping. Individuals may not even realize what’s happening. The airway is blocked causing pauses in breathing or periods of shallow breathing during sleep. This follows loud snoring. There may be a choking or snorting sound as breathing resumes. The condition that the muscles in the back of an individual’s throat relax, the airway narrows or closes when breathing in. An individual can’t get enough air, which can lower the oxygen level in blood. The brain rouses the individual from sleep so that can reopen the airway. The pattern of snort, choke of gasp can repeat itself five to 30 minutes or more each hour, all night, impairing the ability to reach deep sleep.The second form of sleep apnea is Central Sleep Apnea, which occurs when an individual’s brain respiratory control center does not react quickly enough to maintain an even respiratory rate. The sleeper stops breathing and then starts again. There is no breath during the pause in breathing.In a normal sleeping, a sudden drop in oxygen or excess of carbon dioxide stimulates the brain’s respiratory centers to breathe. The malfunction of the brain’s respiratory controls causes the individual to miss one or more cycles of breathing. The lower level of blood oxygen goes long will cause brain damage and minor death incidence.The last form of sleep apnea is Mixed Apnea, which occurs when an individual has both obstructive sleep apnea and central sleep apnea.
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Signs & Symptoms
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Loud and repetitive snoring during sleep. This is one of the most obvious signs of potential OSA.
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Regular pauses in breath during sleep caused by airway obstruction.
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Snorting, choking or gasping during sleep often follow after breathing obstruction, as the brain’s respiratory system arouses breathing through the blockage.
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Waking up at night feeling short of breath and causing restless sleep.
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Uncommon sweating during sleep due to breathing difficulties.
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Excessive daytime sleepiness and fatigue (hypersomnia) to compensate for the low-quality night sleep.
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Awakening with chest pains and nasal congestion.
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Other warning signs
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Morning headaches due to the loss of oxygen in the bloodstream that flows to the brain.
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Waking up with a dry mouth or sore throat.
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Not feeling energetic due to restless sleep.
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Difficulty concentrating and poor judgment.
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Irritability or depression, often feeling short-tempered.
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High blood pressure.
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Decreasing in sexual desire.
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Not everyone who snores has sleep apnea and not everyone who has sleep apnea snores. When you experience early signs of sleep apnea or warning signs, it is better to consult your doctor about any sleep problems.
Risks of Sleep Apnea
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Excessive weight. Individuals with overweight are more likely to have excess fatty issues in throat and muscle, which will narrow the respiratory airway, resulting in much more breathing difficulties during sleep than normal-weight individuals.
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Narrow the respiratory system. By genetics, individuals have narrow respiratory muscles. When the muscle relaxes, it easily blocks the airway.
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Infection in nasal tissue or nasal congestion. Swelling of nasal passages may block the airway causing breathing difficulty and leading to a higher risk of breathing obstructions.
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Gender. Men are more likely to be diagnosed with sleep apnea. Women with menopause have more sleep apnea than younger women due to changes in the hormone leading to neck muscle relaxes.
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Genetics. Individuals with family with a history of Sleep Apnea are at higher risk.
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Aging. Sleep apnea is found more in individuals from 40-year age and up.
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Obesity, high blood pressure, and asthma. Individuals with obesity, high blood pressure, and asthma have a higher risk of sleep apnea is related to poor muscle tone and/or fatty tissues in throats causing breathing obstructions.
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Lifestyle and behaviors. Some lifestyle and behavior cause a higher risk of sleep apnea, such as smoking, alcohol consumption before bed, and some medications, which increase muscle relaxation
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