Sleep apnea is a very serious sleeping disorder. It is characterized by repeated pauses in breathing of a person while he is asleep. What happens is that the person stops breathing for a while and starts breathing again after a little pause that can last anywhere from a few seconds to several minutes. This ‘pause and start’ nature of sleep results in snoring. However, it is important to note that snoring and sleep apnea are two separate conditions and people who snore do not always suffer from sleep apnea.
Types of Sleep Apnea
There are basically three types of sleep apnea; central, obstructive and complex or mixed sleep apnea. Among the three types of sleep apnea, the most common type is obstructive sleep apnea or OSA. This type of sleep apnea happens because of the relaxation of the throat muscles which restricts airflow even though respiratory effort is being made by the patient. Snoring is common in OSA. Central sleep apnea or CSA occurs because the brain fails to send the signals to the muscles which are responsible for controlling breathing function. Complex or mixed sleep apnea is a mixture of OSA and CSA. …show more content…
For instance, sleep apnea is more common in men who are overweight and are over the age of 40. Similarly, Levantines living in Dubai who have large tonsils have a higher chance of getting sleep apnea. In addition to this, people who smoke or drink a lot are also more at risk of developing sleep apnea. Some of the other risk factors for sleep apnea include nasal obstruction of any kind and a family history of sleep