Those who snore always fall asleep first… and are at sleep apnea risk

Sleep Apnea includes three distinct conditions such as Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), Central sleep apnea (CSA) and Complex or Mixed sleep apnea.

Sometimes, some people may experience this condition due to a disease, such as a throat infection. However, if a person suffers from long-term or severe sleep apnea, this can lead to dangerously low oxygen levels in the blood. In this case, urgent medical attention is required.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is the most common form of sleep apnea. It is characterized by restlessness during sleep, snoring and sleepiness during the daytime.

Snoring is the vibration of respiratory structures due to obstructed air movement while asleep; this symptom is most recognizable in people with sleep apnea. When snoring stops, breathing may be most obstructed, with the throat becoming too tight to provide enough air to flow through the airway to make a sound. This breathing condition is called apneas (complete cessation of airflow) or hypopneas (50% reduction in airflow), and may occur several times per hour, and may lead to waking from sleep. Because of this, snoring, as well as loud snoring is not a real sign of OSA.

Most men who have a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or more, a neck circumference (in men over 17in), and stick to an unhealthy lifestyle (smoking and drinking alcohol) are at risk of developing OSA. Statistics show that older adults, men, and people with diabetes are more likely to suffer from OSA. However, some women and children can also suffer from this condition.

Is healthy sleep real or just the deepest desire with sleep apnea? In fact, everything is real, even by changing your lifestyle and some behavioral aspects, you can improve OSA. However, the most effective treatment is Continuous Positive Airway Pressure or ‘CPAP’ machine. CPAP machines are used to open up the airways and keep blood oxygen at a healthy level by maintaining a flow of air to the lungs delivered through a facial mask.

There are also people who do not see improvement with this treatment, in this case, they can refer to surgical procedures to widen their airway or remove and tighten soft-tissue in the throat.

Central sleep apnea (CSA) or ‘Cheyne-Stokes respiration’ is associated with an imbalance of the brain's respiratory control centers during both sleep and wakefulness. Due to this condition, low blood oxygen occurs as a result of failures in the brain's feedback mechanisms.

People who suffer from CSA do not struggle to breathe during sleep but may be seen to cycle between periods of fast and slow breathing in order to compensate for drops in blood oxygen known as ‘hypoxemia’. Each person may suffer from the various effects of this condition, everything depends on how severe their apnea is.

Complex or Mixed sleep apnea is a combination of OSA and CSA. According to some studies, it is believed that people suffering from a long-term, severe OCA develop CSA as a result of damage to the brain's feedback mechanisms. It is now known that research continues in the relationship between ASA and CSA in order to understand everything that is about ‘complex’ or ‘mixed’ apneas.