Sleep Apnea Treatments

Before discussing Sleep Apnea treatments it is advisable to define the condition.  Sleep Apnea is a sleeping disorder wherein the suffer literally stops breathing for several seconds up to a minute during the process of sleeping.  Many persons experiencing Sleep Apnea symptoms are not aware the disorder is occurring until they awake in the morning.  Generally, if the Apnea is not severe they will note they feel tired and irritable.  Further, they may experience morning headache. 

Sleep Apnea can range from mild Apnea episodes where the Sleep Apnea occurs from time-to-time to a level where it occurs frequently.  In some scenarios, the suffer will awake in the middle of the night literally gasping for breath.  This is due to the fact, during the process of sleep, he or she did as previously alluded: stopped breathing.  The event happens as follows:  Upon sleeping, everything becomes relaxed.  In the case of an Apnea sufferer once the muscles in the throat relax so does the windpipe.  The sufferer's oxygen levels within the blood start to decrease and this causes the brain to respond.  When this happens, the Apnea suffer awakes constricting the throat muscles and gasps for air 

This is because the physical response from the brain expects the body to make up for the lack of oxygen brought on when the sufferer had temporarily stopped breathing.  The Apnea suffer takes in a great deal of oxygen, and, for the time being, gets everything regulated until another occurrence. The snorting and gasping can sound like loud snoring however the person with Apnea is (again) making up for a loss of oxygen. 

Naturally this cannot continue as the person may develop cardiovascular problems as a result as well as a decrease in cognitive skills.  In order to take care of the disorder Sleep Apnea treatments are in order after the disorder is diagnosed.  The Sleep Apnea suffer, in order to attain a true diagnosis will need to go to a sleep lab where his or her brain activity, heart rate and levels of respiration are monitored while sleeping.   

Sleep Apnea treatments may include: 

1. Weight loss since many times an excessive gain in weight is what is causing the Sleep Apnea;
2. A mask used at night to keep the airway open; and,
3. Surgery.

Usually during regular breathing, oxygen will pass through the throat to the lungs.  The oxygen moves past the tongue, palate uvula and tonsils. The muscles in the back of the throat will tighten so the structures mentioned will not collapse when taking in oxygen.  However when you are sleeping, the same structures may fall into the passage where oxygen passes which causes snoring as well as Sleep Apnea.  There is a procedure available which prevents the collapse of the preceding structures. 

An accompanying tonsillectomy may or may not be needed.  The Sleep Apnea treatment or surgery is referred to as a Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty.  The exceedingly long descriptive name is applicable to a medical procedure that assists in getting around the collapse of structures during sleep causing Obstructive Sleep Apnea. 

Another Apnea treatment is a sleep mask.  This device keeps the airway passages open; using oxygen in order to effect it.