“No breath” is apnea in literal sense which sounds so ominous as it foretells many untoward possibilities that happen in the darkness of the night. Every night such breathing pauses happen during the sleep every few seconds or minutes. One learns from family members of the snoring, the gasping and rasping sounds one produces and wakes up catching some shortness of breath. What is sleep apnea and how can it affect a person?
While sleep apnea is a common sleep disorder, many are still baffled as what is sleep apnea. Are there underlying conditions? Is the obnoxious sound a bearer of more ominous underlying medical condition? Lack of sleep is one the most priority symptom which must be addressed. The deterioration of short-term memory, cognitive and learning functions are normally seriously affected by poor sleep. It also makes the person tired all the time. They become mediocre performers because they are always sleepy and uninspired.
Sleep apnea is a chronic sleep disorder in which a person repeatedly stops breathing for at least 10 seconds or longer, and may occur hundreds of times during a night. Being unaware of the entire occurrences, they know nothing about it. The process takes several steps such as: the dropping of the oxygen level in the blood, the increase in heart rate, the release of stress hormones, the interruption of sleep, and the awakening of the body awakens then going back to light sleep this next time.
What is sleep apnea and how is diagnosis done? The diagnostic method of sleep apnea involves an overnight study in the process called is called polysomnogram. Aside from the nocturnal symptoms, there are other symptoms like irritability, poor attention, mood changes and depression, headaches, dryness of mouth and throat, fatigue and daytime sleepiness. Frequently, the cause is the obstruction of the upper airway. This sleep disorder can be caused or lead to serious health conditions. Some of these are hypertension, coronary diseases, diabetes, memory problems and many more.
Knowing what is sleep apnea can prompt people into action to have the risks attended to while still manageable. The deterioration of the case can be prevented by understanding its nature.