Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Thesis: Sleep Apnea is becoming more of a dangerous disease that more people are starting to be diagnosed with. It is extremely important that Sleep Apnea is emphasized so that more people are aware of it.

Obstructive sleep apnea has become an increasingly big problem in the United States. It is also apparent that obesity is also one of the biggest epidemics in our country as well. There is no question that both obesity and having obstructive sleep apnea go hand in hand for several reasons. I will go into some detail as to why these two go hand in hand, how young kids are now having issues with these two things, and what we as a society can do about it.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) describes the situation when the patients are pauses in breathing or infrequent breathing during sleep and is usually associated with reduction in blood oxygen saturation. In recent decades, sleep quality has decreased significantly. Large segments of population suffer at least occasionally from sleep disorders such as, difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, disturbing sleep patterns. Obstructive sleep apnea is a common disorder, also known as sleep apnea-hypopnea. It is recognized as an important cause of medical morbidity and motility, and it's associated with a wide range of significant medical squeal, including metabolic disease, cardiovascular disease and arterial hypertension. Smoking is a significant

This relaxation goes even further when the soft palate muscles and uvula (fleshy tissue) sag over the airway as well, creating the "labored and noisy" (Sleep Apnea) so readily associated with the condition. It is important for the student to know that there are times when this blockage causes breathing to stop entirely. Interestingly, those who suffer with sleep apnea do not realize it, inasmuch as another person typically hears the startling noises and suggests that there is a problem. The sufferer may display frequent episodes of falling asleep on the job, giving work associates the clue, as well. "People with sleep apnea usually aren't even aware they have a problem and may not believe it when told" (Sleep Apnea). Inasmuch as sleep apnea is potentially life threatening, it is imperative that the sufferer seeks immediate diagnosis and treatment. Early recognition and treatment of obstructive sleep apnea is a critical step not only in getting a more restful night's sleep, but also in avoiding the potential complications of irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, heart attack and stroke. Sleep apnea is more prevalent in men and young African-Americans; however, it has been diagnosed during all life stages. It is important for the student to know that attaining proper diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea includes consultation with a primary care physician, pulmonologist, neurologist

Sleep Apnea, by Davis, Andrew S, explains the breathing cessations during sleep. Sleep Apnea reduces the amount of oxygen flowing to the brain which causes brain issues. People with sleep apnea usually wake up at night because of the shortness of breathing, then resume back to sleep after adjusting their breathing. Davis states that due to sleep apnea, a few individual has sleeping issues such as snoring, headaches or even find it hard to fall asleep. Sleep apnea is also existed in children (from 0.5% to 3% of the population) which cause them often be crying at night and tired in the next morning. In his writing, Davis states that there are six characteristics of sleep apnea. The most noticeable characteristic is the common nighttime symptoms

Obstructive sleep apnea is a serious, potentially life-threatening condition. It is characterized by repeated cessation of breathing while sleeping, due mostly to complete or partial pharyngeal obstruction. Objectively, it is recognized by a combination of symptoms and laboratory results. These include repetitive apneas and hypopneas, which are accompanied by hypoxia, sleep arousals, and hemodynamic changes.9–12 Moreover, activation of the sympathetic nervous system during respiratory events potentiates vasoconstriction and often triggers increases in blood pressure and heart rate.10,13 Obstructive sleep apnea is also associated with several cardiorespiratory problems (e.g., loud snoring, loud gasps, and daytime breathlessness).14,15

Sleep Apnoea Occurs when the walls of your throat come together during sleep blocking off the airway above your trachea. CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) is considered to be the most effective treatment of sleep apnoea for the reason that it reduces night time sleeplessness as compared to oral appliance.

In the article “Obstructive Sleep Apnea in Women: Specific Issues and Interventions,” obstructive sleep apnea is classified by a few symptoms that patients might experience, including weariness, drowsiness during the day, challenges focusing and completing tasks, depression, poor sleep, and often insomnia. (Wimms, Woehrle, Ketheeswaran, Ramanan, & Armitstead 2016). This specific type of sleep disorder can be quite challenging at times to diagnose. One mechanism that is available to measure how severe one’s obstructive sleep apnea is called the Apnea- hypopnea index (AHI). This index calculates the number of the times that a patient’s airway is blocked every hour during sleep (Wimms et. al., 2016). The physical impact of severe obstructive sleep

Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder that was previously considered to be a disorder of the aging population. However, more and more young patients are being diagnosed with and treated for Sleep Apnea. This group is comprised of groups of people with poor sleep hygiene (patients working shift work, such as health care workers, service members, fire and rescue workers, etc)

OSA is characterized by repeated episodes of either partial or complete obstruction of the upper airways during sleep due to excessive relaxation of airway musculature, which leads to cessation

Obstructive sleep apnea is the most common form between both sleep apneas. OSA occurs when the upper airway collapse during sleep. Collapse of the upper airway may cause decreases in ventilation, but not complete cessation of it, with desaturation and arousal (hypopnea) and/or complete cessation of airflow for more than 10 seconds entitled apnea (Figure 1) 1. Common symptoms of OSA are frequent arousal, snoring, choking/gasping, daytime sleepiness, increased carbon dioxide (CO2) in the blood (hypercapnea), and a decrease of oxygen level in the body (hypoxia). As stated before, OSA is more common in men than in women. Other factors that influence OSA are those with an increased body mass index, thick neck/circumference, small erythematous oropharynx, position of body during sleep (most commonly the supine position), medication, alcohol, or pre-existing cardiac complications2. Usually, OSA is diagnosed by a sleep doctor monitoring the patient during a polysomnography (sleep study). Having a sleep study done is the gold standard diagnostic for assessing sleep-disordered breathing. There is monitoring of the airflow of the nose and mouth, end tidal CO2, the patient’s sleep state by electroencephalography, movement of the chest and abdomen, pulse oximetry, and blood pressure. “The apnea-hypopnea index (AHI)—the number of obstructive events per hour—is the most commonly used measurement to quantify OSA: mild OSA = 5 to 15 events/hour; moderate = 15 to 30

Sleep apnea syndrome is a severe condition that can prove to be deadly. Those diagnosed with apnea often drift off to sleep normally, however, once sleeping their capacity to breath normally becomes blocked. This blockage is triggered when the muscles inside the throat relax and obstruct the airway.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome is a common comorbidity that can have detrimental results on patient safety in the perioperative phase. Symptoms of OSA include daytime somnolence, loud snoring, and irritability. Obesity and anatomic abnormalities are considered risk factors of this sleep disorder. (Brousseau, Dobson, & Milne, 2014). OSA is characterized by periods of apnea during sleep which are caused by obstruction of the upper airway. The obstruction can be partial or complete and places a patient at a high risk for complications in conjunction with general anesthesia. OSA occurs in 28% of women and 38% of men and the rate increases with a BMI > 40. (AORN, 2014). Currently, with the exception of patients

Although Obstructive sleep apnea is less certain in children, in the recent years they have seen an increase of cases of children who have sleep apnea. This is due to the fact of children being obese or to their counterparts. Although there has been an increase of cases this might be an effect of being sleepy or hyperactive. Nonetheless as a result of a recent study in 2007 they have concluded that 6% of children who are teenagers.

The first and most researched sleep disorder is sleep apnea. Sleep apnea does not affect children as often as it effects adults, but it is still a rising concern. Sleep apnea occurs in about 2 per cent of children, mainly between the ages of one through eight. But it can also show up in older children and even infants. (Klein). Research says that young blacks are more at risk than young whites. (Fritz p 83). Children with sleep apnea briefly stop breathing many times during the night due to an obstruction in the respiratory tract. Most of the time it is related to enlarged tonsils and adenoids or to obesity. As the child will gasp for there breath during sleep, they awaken for a few moments to regain there normal breathing and then they immediately return back to sleep. Because the child will be awoken by this many times during the night, this cause sleep deprivation. (Common Sleep Problems AA). The physical symptoms of sleep apnea are excessive daytime sleepiness, snoring, restless sleep, heavy and irregular breathing, excessive perspiring during the night, bad dreams, sleeping with there mouth open, sleeps in strange positions, morning headaches, learning problems, excessive irritability, depression, changes in personality, difficulty