Sleep Apnoea

It means pauses or abnormally low breathing during sleep, which can last from few second to few minutes during sleep & may occur 5 to 30 time per hour. This is common problem. It can our at any age, but in middle age about 0.9 per cent females and about 2.4 per cent males are affected in various severity. It have the serious impact on physical, mental, social well being of the individual. It can be diagnosed by overnight sleep test called polysomnogram or sleep study.

Types of Sleep Apnoea

There are three types of sleep apnoea

Obstructive Sleep Apnoea:-

About 84 per cent of patients suffer from this type of sleep apnoea. Muscle tone of  body decreases during sleep, so air way is compressed which can obstruct the breathing during sleep. This type of sleep apnoea is more common in the obese elderly men smokers, alcoholics persons with broad neck (more than 16 inch)who have enlarged tonsil or large tongue.

They usually snore loudly have rest less sleep. Sleep is interrupted many times during night, they don’t feel  refresh and active during the day. They may fell asleep when doing boring work. They may have headache in morning, are irritable during the day. They are at high or risk of heart attacks stroke, high blood pressure accidents and sudden death. They may suffer from sexual dysfunction.

Central Sleep Apnoea

Brain control the respiration. Brain respiratory centres are depressed during sleep. During sleep in these patients breathing centres don’t react quickly to chemical and neural feed back signals so breathing again period of apnoea, breathing again resume and the cycles are repeated hundreds of time during sleep.

This can occur more commonly if individual who consume respiratory depressant drings like heroin, opiates.

In people suffering from epilepsy decreased oxygen may precipitate in people suffering from coronary heart disease attack the sudden drop in oxygen level may cause angina arrhythmia or even heart attack. About 4 per cents suffer from central sleep apnoea.

Mixed Sleep Apnoea

This is the combination of obstructive sleep apnoea and central sleep apnoea about 13 per cent suffer from mixed sleep apnoea.

Regardless the type of patient sleep apnoea, are rarely aware of the problem themselves. It is usually recognized by others witnessing the person during sleep or it may be suspected due to its ill effects like day time sleepiness fatigue etc.

Management

Sleep apnoea is a serious disease as it decreases  efficiency, make prone to heart diseases stroke, high blood pressure, accidents sexual problem. So it needs treatment.

They should avoid alcohol sleeping pills muscle relaxant.

They should lose weight.

They should quit smoking.

They should sleep with head end of bed raised to 30°.

They should do oropharyngeal muscle exercise so that throat muscle become stronger.

Patients suffering from sleep apnoea can use C-PAP machine while sleeping while provide the air under a definite pressure. So air way don’t close. Patients sleep soundly and get relief from problems arising from the sleep apnoea.

Patients who can’t tolerate the C-PAP machine or not relieved by it should undergo surgery which widen the airway.

Thanks,

Health, Sep-2012