The Different Types of Sleep Apnea
Sleep Apnea CauseSleep apnea is a sleeping disorder characterized by daytime sleepiness, excessive snoring when the person sleeps and generally waking feeling un-refreshed after sleeping. This disorder involves the airway passage getting blocked and causing the person to have a disturbed sleep.
Assessment of patients showing symptoms of sleep apnea is usually done in a sleep clinic. The use of polysomnography (sleep studies) and other tests like arterial blood gases, echocardiogram, electrocardiogram and thyroid function testing tests are conducted. Treatment of these sleep conditions may include the use of a nasal mask, dental appliance or surgery. Lifestyle changes like quitting smoking or losing weight can help in alleviating various problems.
There are 3 main types of sleep apnea:
Obstructive
This is the most common form of the condition and accounts for roughly 80 plus percent of all cases. When a person with this problem goes to sleep, the throat becomes narrow. One of the typical causes for this problem is excessive fat around the neck. Other reasons include structural problems of the mouth, nose and jaw or weak throat muscles due to excessive alcohol consumption, smoking or too many sleeping pills.
Complex
This type of condition accounts for roughly about 15 percent of all the cases diagnosed. Complex apnea is a combination of obstructive and central sleep apnea. This type of apnea generally occurs when a person with a long-standing history of obstructive sleep apnea suddenly develops the central type as well.
Central
This is the rarest form of condition with less than 5 percent of the cases being diagnosed. This type of condition has nothing to do with blocked airway passages. It is caused due to malfunctioning of the brain stem, which is the part of the brain that controls human breathing. The patient stops breathing temporarily when the brain fails to signal the chest muscles to inhale. People who have had a stroke or serious infection and people with Parkinson's disease generally develop central apnea.
There are certain drugs like barbiturates, opiates and benzodiazepines that can affect breathing control while the person is asleep Sometimes there is no detectable cause for the apnea and it is defined as idiopathic.
The key to treating any of these types of sleep disorder is to first determine which of the types of sleep apnea you suffer from. Once it is diagnosed properly, there are various treatments available that designed for that particular type of condition.
James has been writing articles about health issues for over 5 years. Please visit his latest website about sleep apnea at Sleep Apnea Information, with discussions relating to Sleep Apnea Diagnosis, for those suffering from this condition.