What causes Sleep Apnea?

Sleep apnea occurs primarily due to the following reasons:

• Central Sleep Apnea occurs when the brain fails to trigger the respiratory muscles. It occurs when the brain fails to transmit the impulses necessory to fire the muscles responsible for the breathing/respiration. Fortunately, this type of Sleep Apnea does not occur that frequently.
• Obstructive Sleep Apnea occurs when the airflow gets restricted either due to a mechanical or a structural problem in the upper respiratory airway.

Obstructive sleep apnea and snoring could also be caused by nasal allergy, upper respiratory track infection, structural deformity, and/ or infections and enlargement of tonsils and adenoids.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea may also occur if:

• Throat muscles and tongue relax and block the airway.
• The muscles at the base of the tongue and the uvula sag and block the air-way,
• The airway is blocked due to an exessive amount of tissue present in the airway. This usually results because of obesity.

Who is at increased risk of developing Sleep Apnea?

Men are more likely to suffer from Sleep Apnea than women. It occurs in patients of all ages. Here are some interesting facts about this respiratory disorder:

• Middle-aged men (4%) are twice as likely to develop this disease than middle-aged women (2%).
• Obese people are more likely to develope Speep Apnea.
• People suffering from high blood pressure are at an increased risk of developing this disease.
• People with physical abnormality in the upper respiratory system are more likely to develop Speep Apnea.

Sleep Apnea Diagnosis:

Abnormal snoring and unusual sleepiness are almost always present in Sleep Apnea. For the positive diagnosis of this respiratory disorder, however, the following tests may be considered:

• Polysomnography, and
• Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT).

It must be noted that sleep apnea and insomnia are completely different sleep disorders, and one should not be confused with the other.

Sleep Apnea Treatment:

Depending upon the results of polysomnography, and the patients overall health situation, the following treatment options are often considered for the treatment of Sleep Apnea:

• Oxygen therapy,
• Physical Therapy,
• Use of assistive devices,
• Protryptyline (a non-drowsy anti-depressant) has been effective in increasing the muscle tone of the upper respiratory track. Its use, however, is often limited because of it's many side-effects.
• Surgery for Sleep Apnea:
  • Expansion of the airway,
  • Surgical removal of tonsils, adenoids (Tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy) and nasal polyps,
  • Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP) Surgery for opening up/expansion of the airways by surgically tightening up the flabby muscle tissues in the throat and the palate,
  • Thermal Ablation Palatoplasty (TAP) surgical procedures including bipolar cautery, laser, and radiofrequency TAP.
    • Laser Assisted Uvula Palatoplasty (LAUP) for snoring and mild obstructive sleep apnea makes use of a laser beam to vaporize the uvula and part of the palate while the patient is immobilized using local anesthesia.
    • Radiofrequency ablationuses involves use of a needle electrode to target radio waves to shrink the the uvula, the flabby tissue in the palate, the base of the tongue, and any excessive tissue in the nasal turbinates.
    • Genioglossus and Hyod Advancement surgery may be indicated for some sleep apnea patients to open up the airway. This surgery helps prevent collapse of the lower throat, and pulls the tongue muscles forward.
    • Tracheostomy.

    An otolaryngologist-head and neck surgeon must be consulted for evaluating the above surgical options. The specifics of sleep apnea treament depends largely upon the patient's overall health situation and the results of the polysomnography tests.

    If surgery is not an option, the patient may be trained for and fitted with a nasal mask that maintains Continuous Positive Airway Pressure or CPAP.

Insomniacs (sleep deprivation disorders patients) usually have greater difficulties if they develop sleep apnea.

Don't forget to check out Lung Disease News section of this website for the latest Sleep Apnea Treatment News, and our Lung Disease Articles Library for the latest Sleep Apnea Care related Articles.

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