Dangers of Sleep Apnea

Sleep apnea involves short pauses in breathing while sleeping. Because it can last for longer time during sleep, some of breaths can be missed. This is associated with neurological arousal and desaturation of blood oxygen.

Polysomnogram is the test used to detect this problem in patients. The obstructive type of sleep apnea involves physical blockage of breathing. The other type called central sleep apnea is due to lack of effort by the patient to breath well during sleep. The obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is observed to cause many health related problems in the long run.

This is a typical health ailment as the patient is generally rarely aware of the problem he/she is suffering from. But others can notice this as they generally get disturbed while sleeping. This is not only a problem for the partners but also a problem for the patient.

This can occur many times during the sleep for hours. Patients may suffer from this for decades. This can lead to daytime sleepiness, increased risk of diabetes, heart attack and stroke. The sleepiness during daytime is dangerous as it can lead to automobile accidents if the patient is driving.

Latest surveys reveal some important information about this ailment. Researchers from an Indian University have studied the brains of these patients. They concluded that these patients’ brains have shrunken mammillary bodies. This is also found in patients suffering from memory loss due to alcoholism, Alzheimer’s disease and other syndromes.

It means that obstructive sleep apnea can cause memory loss in the long term. It is a dangerous situation which even children suffer from these days.

The symptoms of this disease are daytime sleepiness, restless sleep, and loud snoring. Headaches, irritability, insomnia are also partially symptoms for this problem. As the patient is generally unaware of this problem, it becomes tough for him to get to know without a sleeping partner.

The day time sleepiness can also affect the productivity of the patient at work. So if you are having these symptoms or facing loss of productivity recently may be you should consider this situation seriously and consult a doctor.

There are many ways to treat this disease. Once the patient becomes aware of the problem treating is not a big problem. Even breathing exercises used in Yoga can be effective.