Sleep Apnea

Whenever I want you, all I have to do is dream – song lyrics by the Everly Brothers

A coworker was operated on last week in an attempt to correct his Sleep Apnea, a sleep disorder characterized by pauses in breathing during sleep of ten seconds or more. Each episode of missed breaths is called an apnea. Sometimes Apnea is obvious – a friend tells us her husband will stop breathing for noticeably long periods when asleep; and then restarts with a snort. Sometimes the Apnea is not obvious – who’s going to notice if every few minutes you take 10 seconds between breaths?

Commonly the person with Sleep Apnea has no idea that they are breathing irregularly – the only clue for the sleeper is daytime sleepiness and frequent fatigue caused by poor quality sleep. Apnea reduces the amount of oxygen to the brain and prevents deep sleep that is so refreshing and invigorating. A Wisconsin Sleep Cohort study estimated in 1993 that 1 in 15 Americans have moderate or worse sleep apnea. It also estimated 9% of middle-aged women and 24% of middle-aged men were affected, undiagnosed and untreated.

Snoring is sometimes taken as a sign of Apnea but actually air is moving through your throat while you snore. It’s when you STOP snoring and stop breathing that apnea occurs. What the snoring may tell you is that your throat passageway is narrow and at risk for closure while sleeping.

The test to officially diagnose Sleep Apnea is called a polysomnogram, or "sleep study". The patient is hooked to wires and devices to measure brain waves, breathing, blood oxygen level, eye movement (for REM sleep), leg movements, and chin movement AND then is asked to sleep normally in a hospital bed. Five or more Apnea events per hour is considered clinically significant.

There are two common treatments for Sleep Apnea. I know many people (my father included) who use a CPAP machine (continuous positive air pressure). These machines force air down your throat while sleeping to keep it open and unblocked. The other option is surgery to widen the airway by removing tissue or tightening the muscles alongside it. It’s more expensive but it can cure the problem. By comparison, CPAP cures the symptoms but not the cause and needs to be used the rest of your life.

Bottom Line

If you find yourself tired no matter how much sleep you get, ask your doctor to prescribe a Sleep Study. It’s not cheap, about $7000, but many medical insurers will cover it and the CPAP machine afterwards. The alternative can be death. I know two relatives who fell asleep while driving a car. One caused a major accident with serious injuries; the other woke up after crossing the median but before hitting anything.

http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/SleepApnea/SleepApnea_WhatIs.html

PS

Happy Birthday to my Sister!