Getting Enough Oxygen with Sleep Apnoea

Sleep is important to us because it results in proper brain and body functioning. People who suffer from insomnia may also have sleep apnoea, a condition which can bring about reduction of ventilation and breathing pauses during sleep. An article from http://blog.arabhealthonline.com offers several facts about sleep apnoea.

• Sleep apnoea is a disorder in which a person stops breathing at night. Most cases involve the obstruction of a person’s airway by means of the tongue and soft palate collapsing against the back of the throat.

• The sleeper may not be aware of how often they are waking up, because they may not come to full wakefulness. But the constant cycle of being awakened prevents the sleeper from getting enough deep sleep to be truly rested. This closure of the airway also contributes to reduced oxygen levels in the blood, which saps energy and puts more stress on the body.

• Loud snoring is one warning sign that a person may have the condition, along with frequent pauses in breathing and gasping for breath.

• Waking up and feeling groggy or having a headache upon awakening are other signs of sleep apnoea, as well as constant tiredness during the day and frequently falling asleep when sitting, reading, watching TV, or even driving.

• Someone with these symptoms should talk to their doctor or a sleep specialist about the possibility of sleep apnoea.

• A definite diagnosis requires a sleep study, either performed in a sleep lab or with special equipment at home.

• Losing weight may reduce the occurrence of sleep apnoea for some patients and, combined with other therapies, treat the condition.

• Positional therapy helps people who only experience sleep apnoea when they lay on their backs to sleep. Learning to sleep on their side may be enough to help get better rest, especially in cases of mild sleep apnoea.

• There are products such as special pillows to help a person maintain a side-sleeping position throughout the night. Simple remedies such as putting a tennis ball in a sock and pinning it to the back of one’s pyjamas can also help.

• Oral appliances, which work by slightly repositioning the lower jaw so that the soft tissue in the throat does not obstruct the airway, help some people stop snoring or experience less sleep apnoea.

• Finally, positive airway pressure machines are widely used to treat sleep apnoea, especially in moderate to severe cases. Often called PAP machines, these work by providing pressurized air through a mask and breathing tube to prevent the airway from collapsing. There are multiple types of such machines, depending on whether the air pressure provided is constant (CPAP), variable (VPAP), bi-level (BiPAP), or other variations.

• Some patients may also benefit from the use of an oxygen concentrator in combination with a PAP machine. An oxygen concentrator takes ordinary air and concentrates the oxygen in it, providing greater oxygen flow to the person using the machine. Since low blood oxygen is one of the problems with sleep apnoea, some individuals may benefit from having concentrated oxygen therapy as well.

Read more here:

http://blog.arabhealthonline.com/getting-enough-oxygen-with-sleep-apnoea/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=getting-enough-oxygen-with-sleep-apnoea

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