Do You Suffer from Obstructive Sleep Apnea?

Do you suffer from extreme fatigue during the day? Are you awakened during the night to find yourself gasping for air? If you have these symptoms, it is possible you may be suffering from obstructive sleep apnea, or OSA. There are approximately 30 million Americans who are victims of OSA. It is important for anyone who has this problem, or knows someone they care about with it to have an understanding of this condition.

So what is OSA? OSA is a condition in which an individual experiences recurrent episodes during sleep when their throat closes, and they cannot breath air into their lungs (apnea). What happens during sleep, is the muscles that normally hold the throat open during waking hours, relax too much during sleep, allowing the airway to narrow. When the throat is partially closed, or the muscles relax too much, trying to inhale will completely close the throat off so that air is not able to pass at all. This is an obstructive sleep apnea episode.

If an episode lasts more than 10 seconds, then it is considered to be apnea. An apneic episode in severe cases can last up to two minutes. These episodes are almost accompanied by a reduction in the level of oxygen in the blood. As long as sleep continues, the apneic episode will continue. Once the patient is aroused, this instantly increases the muscle activity of the tongue and throat muscles that enlarge the airway, allowing the patient to breath air back into the lungs. This cycle may reoccur hundreds of times a night, with the patient never knowing it is occurring.

Depending on the degree of severity, OSA can be potentially life threatening. In an individual with undiagnosed OSA, is likely to suffer a stroke, heart attack, or cardiac arrest during sleep. Not to mention, a person who is being aroused hundreds of times a night to breath, will be very sleep deprived. For this reason, there is an increased risk of accidents such as falling asleep while driving, as well as impaired function to perform work duties. OSA that is not treated, only gets worse, eventually resulting in complete or partial disability, and even death.

So what should you do if you suspect you suffer from OSA? Well, it is important to contact your physician, however, health care professionals are not well informed about OSA. One first step is to ask a spouse or family member to take note of any observations they may have. They can go as far as to video or audio-tape you while you are sleeping. The sounds, and repeated gasping for breath are highly noticeable. When your family member confirms your suspicions, this would be a good time to contact your physician for an appointment. Your physician will then more than likely direct you to a sleep disorder center for an overnight sleep study or polysomnogram. With a polysomnogram, you will be monitored and observed by a technician. You will be connected to various monitoring equipment with electrodes placed on your scalp to measure your brain waves. Other electrodes will be placed on the eyelids, nose, finger, chin, abdomen and legs. Your blood oxygen saturation will be monitored as well, to see if you have periods of desaturation. You will be video taped during sleep as well.

So, now that you have been confirmed as having OSA, how is it treated? The most commonly prescribed treatment for OSA is continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP. A CPAP machine delivers a continuous airway pressure by a nasal mask the patient wears while sleeping. The pressure keeps the throat open, eliminating the obstructive apnea episodes, thus allowing normal breathing during sleep. Most patients notice increased productivity during the day, due to the uninterrupted sleep after beginning CPAP therapy, and much less fatigue. In some cases, OSA can be treated by various surgical procedures, depending on the source of the obstruction. However, surgical procedures are not always successful, not to mention surgical treatment is invasive. It is highly recommended to learn as much as you can before choosing to treat OSA by a surgical procedure.

To use a CPAP machine, a small nasal mask is placed over the nose only. Patients must sleep with their mouth closed to allow the pressure to be distributed, if a patient has difficulty sleeping with the mouth closed, a chin strap may be used to aid with this. Most patients adjust to the CPAP very quickly and report a much more deep sleep resulting in an increase in daytime alertness. Generally, the sleep technician will spend time with you titrating the pressures on your CPAP, to achieve optimal results.

If you believe you are suffering from sleep apnea, here are some signs and symptoms:

- Feeling unrefreshed upon waking
- Difficulty concentrating
- A dry mouth upon waking
- Heartburn
- Weight gain
- Memory lapses
- Morning headaches
- Confusion and sever drowsiness upon waking
- Excessive perspiration during sleep
- Change in personality

If you have these signs or symptoms, please consult with your physician for diagnosis and treatment. OSA can be potentially life threatening if went untreated. With treatment you will feel much better and reduce the risk of mortality. OSA is a serious condition and needs to be treated as soon as possible.