Obstructive Sleep Apnea Essay

* Obstructive Sleep Apnea is when the pharyngeal airway collapses or narrows respectively during sleep. It is accompanied by excessive daytime sleepiness and risk for cardiovascular disease. Risk factors for OSA include obesity, large soft palate/tongue, the male sex, and aging.

3. Sleeping on your side instead of your back to help keep your throat open.

In serious cases, the continuous oxygen deprivation caused by sleep apnea can lead to high blood pressure, heart attacks, strokes, or even sudden death.Here are some steps that help many people with sleep apnea to sleep better:Stop use of all alcohol or sleep medicines.If you are overweight, lose weight.Sleep on your side instead of your back. Sometimes, sewing a tennis ball into the back of a night-shirt can prevent this from occurring.If you still have problems, you can wear a special mask over your nose and mouth while you are sleeping. The mask will keep your airway open by adding pressure to the air you breathe. The mask helps most people with sleep apnea. In very few cases, surgery is necessary to remove tonsils or extra tissue in the throat. Whatever the treatment, remember that

This relaxation goes even further when the soft palate muscles and uvula (fleshy tissue) sag over the airway as well, creating the "labored and noisy" (Sleep Apnea) so readily associated with the condition. It is important for the student to know that there are times when this blockage causes breathing to stop entirely. Interestingly, those who suffer with sleep apnea do not realize it, inasmuch as another person typically hears the startling noises and suggests that there is a problem. The sufferer may display frequent episodes of falling asleep on the job, giving work associates the clue, as well. "People with sleep apnea usually aren't even aware they have a problem and may not believe it when told" (Sleep Apnea). Inasmuch as sleep apnea is potentially life threatening, it is imperative that the sufferer seeks immediate diagnosis and treatment. Early recognition and treatment of obstructive sleep apnea is a critical step not only in getting a more restful night's sleep, but also in avoiding the potential complications of irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, heart attack and stroke. Sleep apnea is more prevalent in men and young African-Americans; however, it has been diagnosed during all life stages. It is important for the student to know that attaining proper diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea includes consultation with a primary care physician, pulmonologist, neurologist

          The dictionary defines sleep as “The natural periodic suspension of consciousness during which the powers of the body are restored” (Webster’s 638) If one is waking up on an average of 300 times per night, the chances of complete body restoration are minimal. The Greek word apnea literally means “without breath”. An estimated 30 million Americans stop breathing during their sleep sometimes 30-40 times per hour and often for a minute, or longer each time. Of these, about 20 million are in the early stages, and about 10 million have progressed to a level of severity that requires treatment. According to the National

Snoring is not always severe enough for patients to undergo this type of surgery. However, there are some individuals that can experience severe obstructions and difficulty breathing while they are asleep, and this can place tremendous

Thick necks: people with naturally thick often develop sleep apnea symptoms, even if they aren't overweight.

The problem could be in your nose, jaw, soft palate, tonsils, tongue, or back of your throat. Your doctor needs to determine where the problem is so the appropriate surgery can be planned. In addition to have sleep testing done, you may be referred to an ENT specialist for an examination to find the source of the blockage.

Snoring is a nosy breathing that is caused by the vibration of the soft plate and it can be a sign of sleep apnea. A person usually does not know when they snore

FACT: You may think your partner’s snoring is simply annoying, but it can actually be something much more serious: a sign of a disorder called sleep apnea. Sleep apnea causes a person’s breathing to be interrupted during sleep. These periods of interruption are characterized by reduced oxygen levels, putting more strain on the heart. Sleep apnea also causes frequent awakenings during sleep, causing those with it to wake

Obstructive sleep apnea remains the most common and occurs when the throat muscles relax when a person sleeps. These muscles support the structures of the mouth, such as the tonsils and soft palate. When they relax, the airway closes down, temporarily halting the passing of air. When the brain realizes this is occurring, it wakes the person up to allow the airway to reopen. Most individuals don't fully wake up when this happen, and the person may actually snort when the airway reopens. This can occur hundreds of times throughout the night.

Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder caused by a blockage of the airways during sleep. It causes interruptions of the breath during sleep and can actually wake you up! This causes poor quality of sleep and stress on the entire body.

In the textbook, “Psychology in Modules”, sleep is defined as “our periodic natural loss of consciousness” (pg.100) (Myers & Dewall, 2015). I am a person that loves to sleep a lot and consider it as a hobby of mine as it is useful in stressful times to restore and gain energy back after a long day depending on the type of situation that occurred. Based upon the sleeping disorders discussed such as insomnia, narcolepsy, etc.…, I never undergone any of them but the common one that I have seen that most people tend to get is sleep apnea. I would wonder how it occurs to others as in my family, both of my parents snore in the middle of their sleep but my siblings and I don’t. There would be times where they would choke in their own saliva and wake up having trouble

The first thing you are supposed to start with is by sleeping on your side. This minimizes the chances of the snoring significantly. When you sleep lying upside, it will make your tongue go backward and block your throat. This will cause a hindrance in airflow and this increase the likelihood of snoring. Snoring starts when there air passage narrows down. You need to avoid sleeping on your back. American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons suggest that you can stitch a tennis ball to your back. This will prevent you from sleeping on your back. Whenever you will come on your back, the tennis ball will disturb you thus preventing you from sleeping flat.

The first and most researched sleep disorder is sleep apnea. Sleep apnea does not affect children as often as it effects adults, but it is still a rising concern. Sleep apnea occurs in about 2 per cent of children, mainly between the ages of one through eight. But it can also show up in older children and even infants. (Klein). Research says that young blacks are more at risk than young whites. (Fritz p 83). Children with sleep apnea briefly stop breathing many times during the night due to an obstruction in the respiratory tract. Most of the time it is related to enlarged tonsils and adenoids or to obesity. As the child will gasp for there breath during sleep, they awaken for a few moments to regain there normal breathing and then they immediately return back to sleep. Because the child will be awoken by this many times during the night, this cause sleep deprivation. (Common Sleep Problems AA). The physical symptoms of sleep apnea are excessive daytime sleepiness, snoring, restless sleep, heavy and irregular breathing, excessive perspiring during the night, bad dreams, sleeping with there mouth open, sleeps in strange positions, morning headaches, learning problems, excessive irritability, depression, changes in personality, difficulty