You must have heard that there is a connection between snoring at night and problems that lead to sudden sleep deaths. If you want to get acquainted with this connection, we recommend that you read the rest of this article, in this article what we are going to discuss about a term called sleep apnea.
Sleep apnea is a short-term respiratory arrest that occurs and during which your arterial blood oxygen level drops. Sleep apnea and snoring is a very important and potentially dangerous disorder that occurs during sleep.
what you will read next :
Introduction
Temporary respiratory arrest and snoring is a very important problem that some people suffer from. In sleep apnea, a person frequently suffers from respiratory arrest, and sleep apnea occurs in both children and adults, and can be a really serious and worrying issue.
You may also want to know the cause of this respiratory arrest and how to get rid of it. Read on to find out the reasons for treatment and more information about the disorder itself.
Types
There are types of this disorder. First of all, if you are a person who snores loudly in sleep or you have a partner who snores loudly and still feels tired and drowsy after sleeping, you may have sleep apnea.
The types of this disorder are:
- Obstructive sleep apnea:
It is the most common type of sleep apnea and occurs when the muscles of the throat and larynx become relaxed. In this way, the airway becomes narrow, and this type of disorder usually occurs, as we have said, following obstruction of the upper respiratory tract.
- Central sleep apnea:
A person with this disorder does not have his or her airway blocked, but there are problems in the brain where the airway control center cannot send the necessary messages and signals to the respiratory muscles.
- Mixed Sleep apnea:
If the obstructive type and the central type are present together.
Signs
Symptoms and manifestations of obstructive and central respiratory arrest are linearly similar and overlap. Sometimes the symptoms are such that the doctor misdiagnoses them and unfortunately there may be serious events for the person.
The most common signs and symptoms of sleep apnea, whether obstructive or central, are as follows:
- Insomnia at night
- Oversleeping during the day
- Morning headache
- Defects and decreased focus and attention
- Daily mood swings
- Feeling tired during the day
- Loud Snoring, which is the most common manifestation of obstructive sleep apnea.
- Jumping out of sleep due to shortness of breath and the feeling of suffocation that commonly occurs in people with central type.
- Existence of intermittent breathing during sleep, which is usually noticed by the partner or spouse.
Cause
- Cause of obstructive respiratory arrest
This type of disorder occurs in children and adults and occurs when the muscles behind the throat and larynx become relaxed. Following this relaxation, the patient’s upper airway becomes narrow and even blocked. The brain understands this problem and realizes this inability and wakes the person for a short time to open the airway for breathing, this awakening is so short that the person generally does not remember it.
During sleep, the sound of snoring, shortness of breath, and even a choking sensation can be heard from the affected person.
It can be said that this pattern can be repeated up to three times per hour or even more.
- Cause of central respiratory arrest
This type is less common than the obstruction type. It usually affects the elderly and men. The central type occurs when the respiratory control center in the brain is unable to send messages to balance the movements and create appropriate movements and reactions to the respiratory muscles, So the person will not have any effort to breathe for a short time, in which case the person will have a respiratory arrest and wake up due to shortness of breath and a feeling of suffocation, and they struggle intermittently to get deep sleep. These people usually have intermittent sleep at night and may even have nighttime insomnia due to respiratory problems.
Risk factors
Obese people and people with short and thick necks, People with thin airways, being a man, having an older age, having a positive family history, using sedatives, Alcohol and smoking are some of the things that increase the risk of this problem.
Epidemiology
The prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea is about three to eight percent in men and one to five percent in women.
Obstructive sleep apnea is said to be more severe in Asians.
Statistics show that the prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea increases until middle age, but after the age of sixty and sixty-five it is plateau.
Risks of sleep apnea and risk of death due to respiratory arrest and snoring
You may be wondering if sleep apnea with snoring is dangerous, if it can be life threatening, if a person who has a lot of snoring at night can be put to death. The answer is yes, if you or someone else has sleep apnea and Do not take care of it and do not have treatment and control. The following problems may threaten your health.
Increased risk of heart failure, Increased risk of sudden death of cardiac origin, Increased risk of heart attack, Existence of cardiac arrhythmia, and increased risk of fatal heart attacks, As well as Increased and exacerbated Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Increased headache, Depression, decreased efficiency in daily activities, including educational, Occupational hypertension and increased risk of metabolic syndrome, and increased risk of type 2 diabetes.
It has been shown that people who suffer from obstructive sleep apnea and snoring are more likely to develop heart problems than others, and They are also much more likely to have sudden deaths of cardiovascular origin.
These people are clearly in a lot of pain, so obstructive sleep apnea can cause death by increasing heart attacks, so if you or your loved ones have the above disorder, you need to see a doctor for further examination.
In the following, we describe the treatments.
Diagnosis
Accurate history of symptoms and manifestations with some tests such as polysomnography tests that are performed both in sleep clinics and at home help the doctor to make a diagnosis. However, we must say that sleep tests at home may be negative and normal, While the person suffers from sleep apnea.
Treatment
- Treatment of sleep apnea and snoring at home
If a person suffers from mild sleep apnea and snoring, following simple tips such as losing weight, quitting smoking, not drinking alcohol, and nervous system suppressants can help control the symptoms and problems caused by respiratory failure, If these methods do not work, they should also use a medical device or surgery.
Sleep apnea treatment device:
This device is called CPAP.
(Continuous positive air way pressure)
This device is a treatment for a person who suffers from sleep apnea, in which a mask is placed on the nose and mouth during sleep. The mask of the device is attached to a device and then brings a constant flow of air to the nose.
This airflow keeps the airway constantly open and regulates breathing. This device is the most common treatment for shortness of breath and snoring.
- surgery
The doctor will go to surgery to treat Sleep apnea and snoring when the above device is not effective. Also, if a person has a Deviation of the nasal septum, large tonsils, or has a small jaw and chin, or has a short, fat neck, surgery may be needed. Each of the above causes the airway to become thinner, in other words, the person’s throat and airway to shrink, causing pressure on the airway and obstruction and narrowing.