subject: Obstructive Sleep Apnea: How Does It Begin And Where Does It End? [print this page] Some disease conditions are scary not only because the health risks they carry but also the remedial measures that are recommended by the doctor. Obstructive sleep apnea certainly is one such distressful sleep disorder that can make life miserable and when the doctor says that it might call for sleep apnea surgery, the situation can be truly frightening.
No matter how common sleep apnea is in this country, we only get interested to know more about it, when someone close is diagnosed with it. Of course, the first point of concern is how to treat obstructive sleep apnea but chances are that you would also like to know how it all begins and where it ends.
What is sleep apnea? How does it begin?
Sleep apnea, more specifically obstructive sleep apnea develop when snoring is left untreated. It is marked by frequent pauses in breathing and such pauses (lasting for 10 seconds or more) could recur 5 to 30 times in an hour, while the individual is asleep. In this regard, it is important to learn about sleep apneas relation to deviated septum.
Deviated septum is usually an anatomical birth defect (at times it may result from a sports injury to the nose) where the central dividing cartilage, or the septum, is tilted more on one side of the nasal cavity, making one nostril significantly narrower than the other. This defect results in a series of sleeping problems as well as serious breathing difficulties. Perhaps the first evidence of deviated septum is loud and persistent snoring, which when left untreated, usually worsens to sleep apnea.
Obstructive sleep apnea: what is it?
There are 3 types of sleep apnea: obstructive, central and mixed. Of the three, obstructive sleep apnea is most common, caused when there is a complete collapse and blockage of the upper respiratory tract. Central sleep apnea, on the other hand is usually fallout of some specific disease conditions involving brain stem injury, etc. This condition develops as a result of cessation of coordination between the brain and muscles controlling breathing. Mixed sleep apnea is a combination of the other two types.
Obstructive sleep apnea: symptoms and remedy
As is evident, sleep apnea does not develop overnight. Some of the typical sleep apnea symptoms that drive the patient to seek medical treatment include: loud and persistent snoring; repeated breathlessness during sleep; inability to sleep properly; rapid weight gain; irritability, depression and other mood disorders, etc.
Since deviated symptom is usually associated with sleep apnea, most of the time, the usual natural sleep remedies do not yield the desired results, though doctors before thinking of sleep apnea surgery do give them a try. Some of the common natural sleep remedies include weight loss, quitting alcohol, changing sleeping posture, raising pillow height, etc.
How does the treatment option vary with mild vs. severe sleep apnea? In case of mild sleep apnea, the condition may be brought under control with the help of some natural sleep remedies as mentioned above. However for moderate to severe sleep apnea, sleep apnea surgery might be imperative. Of all the surgical options available for treating obstructive sleep apnea, somnoplasty procedures have proved to be most popular.
