Sleep apnea types
Sleep apnia is a sleeping disorder in where your nightly sleep is disturbed by several short (up to a minute) breathing interrupts. Sleep apnea can be dangerous if not treated in time.
Sleep apnia types
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The name sleep apnea means literally (from Greek language) "with no breath" and it comes from the fact that people suffering from the disorder SA actually stop breathing in a repeated manner while sleeping. It can be as frequent as hundreds of times in one nights sleep. The duration can be up to a minute or even longer which makes it a serious condition if not treated.
Three types of sleep apnia (apnea)
- Obstructive SA (OSA)
- Central SA
- Mixed SA
The most common is the obstructive sleep apnea which characterizes by obstructions in the upper airways while sleeping which in turn will reduce the amount of oxygen in the blood stream. Once the oxygen level gets low enough, under a warning level, the body will awaken itself and try to take correcive action which often means a sudden outburst of snoring.
The airways can become obstructed by too much tissue there that gets softer while sleeping and collapses which causes the blockage, the tongue being too large or by large tonsils. Another possibility of airway obstruction is in the nose passages and in other cases again, the actualy build of the jaw itself can play a role in SA.
In central sleep apena on the other hand, there is no blockage of the airways but it is a signal problem between the brain and the breathing musculature in where the muscles get the wrong signals, or no signals at all for shorter periods.
Mixed sleep apnia is where there is both factors present - an airway blockage due to physical factors and a nerve signal problem.