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Treatment for sleep apnea makes it easier for people who suffer from it to combat the condition. Cases range from the very mild to the very serious, and treatments vary depending on the severity of the condition. If you’ve been diagnosed with this condition, keep in mind that there are many treatments out there available to help you cope with your diagnosis.

Mild cases may not require any invasive procedure at all-you may simply need to change your daily behaviors. These are called conservative approaches. You can lose weight and stay away from alcohol and/or sleeping pills. Changing the position you’re in while sleeping helps for regular breathing, and you should especially avoid sleeping on your back. Quitting smoking also helps as your upper airway swells more when you smoke. These behavioral changes can help put a mild case of sleep apnea to bed.

If a conservative approach isn’t enough, you could try Continuous Positive Airway Pressure, or CPAP. With this treatment for sleep apnea, you’ll wear a mask over your nose and/or mouth while you sleep. This mask hooks up to a machine, and the machine gives a constant flow of air into your nostrils. The positive pressure keeps your airways open and your breathing stops being impaired.

There are also dental devices out there to treat this condition. Certain dentists have special training to deal with patients who have this need. They can create special devices to help keep your airway open while you’re asleep.

There are, however, some conditions that lead to sleep apnea that may require surgery to fix. These conditions include significantly enlarged tonsils, a deviated nasal septum, and a small lower jaw coupled with an overbite that makes the throat abnormally narrow.

There are a few frequently-performed surgeries. One is simply nasal surgery that corrects nasal obstructions. Another is called Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty, also known as UPPP, which removes soft tissue on the back of the throat and palate to increase the width of the airway where your throat opens. There’s also a procedure called mandibular maxillar advancement surgery. This is an invasive procedure that fixes some facial abnormalities and throat obstructions.

There are other, less invasive procedures that you can undergo to reduce or stiffen the soft tissue of your palate. However, the long-term success of treatment for sleep apnea of these procedures has not so far been determined. They include pillar palatal implants, somnoplasy, and injection snoreplasty.

Although anyone can suffer from the disease, there are certain risk factors associated with it to watch out for. These factors vary for the central and obstructive types. Sufferers of the obstructive type are more likely to be overweight, male, and over the age of 65, be black, Hispanic, or a Pacific Islander, smoke, or be related to someone else who has this condition. The central type, while also more likely to affect men and people over the age of 65, is more often associated with serious conditions such as spinal or brainstem injuries, heart or neurological diseases, or stroke.

As with any diagnosis, you should research all treatment options and find something that’s right and healthy for you. And remember, while this diagnosis may be frightening, there are plenty of methods of treatment for sleep apnea that can help you can through it.

Medical report showing the duration and frequency of sleep apnea of a test subject. Duration and frequencies are sorted by the sleeper's position in bed. Français : Analyse de la durée et du nombre d'apnées en fonction de la position du dormeur. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

There are two forms of sleep apnea; each has its own causes and appropriate cures. But what distinguishes obstructive sleep apnea from central sleep apnea? And how can it be cured? Sleep apnea could happen to everybody regardless of age and gender. However, sleep apnea is observed to occur frequently in men aged over 65.

Obstructive sleep apnea causes

Generally, the relaxation of the muscles in the throat during sleep is what causes sleep apnea. When these muscles relax, the throat closes when inhaling therefore breathing temporarily stops. The body reacts to the shortage of air therefore a person suffering from sleep apnea will wake up immediately but briefly. People with obstructive sleep apnea have narrower airways. Sometimes, having a small mouth with bigger tongue and having a small face is also considered to be sleep apnea causes.

One of the tell-tale signs that a person has obstructive sleep apnea is snoring or choking during sleep. The snoring and choking is actually away for the body to reopen the airways to let the air inside. Most people with obstructive sleep apnea are not aware that they have sleep apnea and this sleeping disorder makes them irritable during the day because of the light shallow sleep they had at night.

There are several risk factors; being overweight, smoking, and being related to someone suffering from sleep apnea, may cause sleep apnea in adults. Other risk factors are enlarged nostrils, thick neck, deviated septum and a thin chin. Other medical conditions like allergies that inflame the throat muscles can also cause sleep apnea. High blood pressure is also observed to be a cause of apnea.

Obstructive sleep apnea is often diagnosed with the help of the sleeping partner, since most of the people suffering from obstructive sleep apnea do not know that have a sleeping disorder; the partner is the one who observes the apnea episodes while they are sleeping. Choking, snoring and gasping for breath are observed.

Central sleep apnea causes

The major central sleep apnea cause is generally the inability of the brain to transmit neurotransmitters to the muscles that controls breathing. This usually happens to adults and infants suffering from a heart disease. Aside from heart diseases, there are other diseases that can cause central sleep apnea like stroke, neurological and congenital diseases, brain injury and spinal injury. People with central sleep apnea are characterized to have a breathing pattern; usually they breathe fast, and then slow down, and then stop. This happens because it causes the body to stop breathing for 20 seconds or less and when the brain detects the lack of oxygen in the body, it will push the body to breathe faster so as to release the carbon dioxide in the body. Then after the body has regained enough oxygen, breathing will slow down then suddenly stop, repeating the cycle.

What causes sleep apnea in adults is the underlying medical condition they have, while for infants, it is characterized by prematurity. Everyone who suffers from central sleep apnea is mostly aware of their sleeping disorder because they remember waking up because of the sudden shortness of breath during sleep. Also, central sleep apnea causes sleepiness during daytime. Most infants out-grow sleep apnea but for adults advance treatment like surgery and using of breathing devices are used to cure apnea.

Complex sleep apnea is the combination of both obstructive and central sleep apnea and the causes are the combination of narrow airways and breathing lapses. This kind of sleeping disorder can also be cured using complex treatment.

Central sleep apnea is diagnosed mostly in a sleep laboratory with the use of polysomnography, a device that monitors the heart, brain and lung activity, it also monitors the breathing pattern and oxygen levels in the body while asleep. In this way, the doctor observes and recommends what appropriate measures or treatments should be used. Some prefer to be examined in the comfort of their homes; in this case causes are monitored through the use of a portable monitoring device that is attached to the body. However, unlike the polysomnography, it cannot detect all forms of sleep apnea.

There are several sleep apnea causes and the only way to know if a person has sleep apnea is if he is aware of his sleeping pattern. People tend to ignore snoring or choking during sleep, maybe because they are not aware that it happened or they simply don’t care. But sleep apnea can be dangerous if it remains untreated. Snoring may be a sign of sleep apnea, but still some people who have sleep apnea do not snore, so how can it be diagnosed? Keeping track of a person’s sleeping pattern is important; a person can tell if he has a good night sleep if he feels refreshed when he wakes up but if he feels irritable and sleepy during waking hours, it would be better to consult a doctor to diagnose which one has.

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Example CPAP Mask (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

To many people, snoring is a condition that does not need any central sleep apnea treatment. Although it can be very irritating, most people can live with it without any problem. What these people do not know is that snoring can be a symptom for a condition known as sleep apnea. Apnea during sleep is a condition wherein the patient experiences pauses of breath during sleep. It is brought about many conditions, such as anatomical problems in the nose or throat or a problem in the central nervous system. Three types of sleep apnea exist: obstructive, central, and complex. The treatment for central sleep apnea, obstructive, and complex sleep apnea varies. So before the treatment can be initiated, physicians usually go to the root of the disorder.

How to Know When You Need It?

Sleep apnea is harder to treat than obstructive sleep apnea, mainly because the signs and symptoms in central sleep apnea can be seen less. 20% of the patients of who suffer from sleep apnea tend to resolve their problems on their own and do not need treatment. Those who are not so lucky develop the following signs and symptoms: extreme fatigue, sleepiness during daytime, and difficulty in sleeping. People with sleep apnea have problems regarding their neurological condition such as muscle weakness, and difficulty in swallowing or dysphagia.

Physicians diagnose central sleep apnea and decide the need for a treatment , through sleep study. In a sleep study, the patient’s brain waves are monitored through an ECG or EKG device. Changes in the brain waves are measured to figure out the brain’s activity level during sleep. When the brain centers show a disturbance, then the client can be diagnosed as having a sleep apnea. Brain oxygen and carbon dioxide levels are also monitored, because they tend to decrease when the person has central sleep apnea.

Further diagnostic examinations that physicians do before the conduct the treatment are pulmonary function studies and a scan of the spinal area of the patient. This is to rule out any structural problems that can cause sleep apnea. After the problem has been pointed out, it can now be properly initiated.

The Central Sleep Apnea Treatment Regimen

The first in line for treating it is the use of a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure or CPAP mask. The CPAP mask is used to open the patient’s airway while he is sleeping, thereby reducing the problems regarding sleep apnea. The mask fits snugly over the patient’s face and can be quite uncomfortable during the first night of usage.

For this treatment to be effective through this method, the patient must ensure that the mask fits properly over his face. If the mask is too tight or too loose, the air delivered can be erroneously high or low in pressure, which can impair the lining of the patient’s throat. Tubes and linings must also be consistently checked for kinks and obstruction to ensure that air flows freely. The CPAP machine can also produce noise that is irritating to some patients. To remedy the problem, the patient can place the machine under his bed.
Another sleep apnea treatment being done today is stimulating the patient’s oxygen drive by increasing the concentration of carbon dioxide inhaled. If the problem of the patient’s sleep apnea is related to the malfunction of the patient’s breathing centers, the solution is to provide a way to stimulate it. Increasing the patient’s inhalation of carbon dioxide will force him to expel the air, thus making him breathe while sleeping. The dangers associated with this kind of treatment are carbon dioxide poisoning and the aggravation of the disorder because of the increased stressed on the patient.

Adaptive Servo-Ventilation or ASV is another form . It targets the patient’s breathing centers and is able to record information in a computer database. The machine is able to stabilize the patient’s breathing patterns by increasing the pressure of the air inspired during sleep. This also prevents pauses of breath in the duration of sleep. ASV can be more effective than CPAP in this type of treatment.

Other ways to conduct such a treatment are administration of medication and treatment of underlying conditions. Patients are advised against the use of sedatives when they have the disorder and are prescribed with drugs that stimulate the breathing centers in the brain. In some cases, sleep apnea is associated with heart failure, and treatment of the disorder can provide the patient relief of symptoms.

There are other modes of sleep apnea treatment that are conservative in nature such as changes in lifestyle to eliminate root causes of central sleep apnea. Some of the treatment regimens are effective to some clients and some are not. It is up to the patient and the health care provider to find which central sleep apnea treatment is the best.

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Full face CPAP mask (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

If you have lived with a patient that has sleep apnea, you probably have seen a sleep apnea mask. The mask for sleep apnea is known as a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure or CPAP mask and is the common medical treatment for sleep apnea. The mask is actually only a part of the CPAP machine. The CPAP machine is made from tubes, humidifiers, and a ventilation device that all have certain functions to perform. The CPAP machine is intended to be used when conservative sleep apnea treatment methods fail to work. Wearing a CPAP mask during sleep is for long-term use, so it is important to be ready so that proper adjustments can be made by the patient and the people living with him. Here are some of the important concepts that must be missed when the patient is on a mask of this type.
The Principle behind the mask

As said previously, the breathing mask for sleep apnea is just a part of the whole equipment. When taken at a closer look, there are other parts that can contribute to the overall functioning of the device. The first part of the equipment is the CPAP machine. This is the device responsible for bringing the air that is delivered through the mask. The pressure settings and the amount of air administered is configured in this device and is generally based on the physician’s recommendations and the patient’s preferences. Another important part of the device is the humidifier. Without the humidifier, the device will give off dry air, which can be very irritating to the patient’s airway. Another important piece of the device is the filter, which functions to clean the air of bacteria and other harmful microorganisms before they reach the sleep apnea mask. Other parts of the device are the tubes, face supporters, and the mask itself.

The CPAP device’s function is to keep the patient’s airway open by administering pressurized air during the sleeping period of the patient. Because the patient is sleeping when the device is being used, it is important that he must be comfortable in wearing it as possible. That is why prior to the use of the device, the patient goes through fitting with the physician. The mask must be the right fit – not too loose or too tight – to ensure that the right amount of air is being received by the patient. Another important thing that must be considered when looking for a mask is the breathing pattern of the patient. If the patient is a nose breather, then a mask that covers only the nose can be used. If the patient is a mouth breather, a full face mask may serve him effectively.

Like when shopping for other devices, it is important to conduct proper research on the type of mask that will suit your needs. Several types of masks exist, and each of them has their own functions. Research is the key to get the most out of the CPAP machine.
What if it Does not Work?

When the mask fails to do its task, the physician might opt to use sleep apnea mask alternatives for the patient. One of these alternatives is the Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure or BPAP. The BPAP is used when the patient cannot adapt from the CPAP or if he experiences no relief from the device. It is also effective for clients who have central sleep apnea, because their breathing patterns are disturbed. It differs from the CPAP because it can automatically adjust the amount of pressure delivered through it. Some machines can even stimulate breathing when they detect that the patient has not performed any breaths for a certain period of time.

Another alternative for the CPAP device is the Adaptive Servo-Ventilation or ASV. The ASV works similarly to the CPAP and BPAP, but it has the capability of measuring and recording the patient’s sleeping patterns. It uses air pressure to prevent pauses of breath while the patient is sleeping. The ASV is effective in treating both obstructive and central sleep apnea.
When the use of the mask does not work entirely, the patient can resort to medication and even surgery to treat sleep apnea. Medical therapy of sleep apnea consists of drugs that treat the sleepiness of the patient and not the sleep apnea itself. Use of sleeping pills and sedatives are prohibited, as they can worsen the condition of the patient. Surgery is used to repair the patient’s anatomical structures that contribute to sleep apnea. The most common of these surgeries is Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty, which intends to make the airway wider by removing some of the tissues present in the throat of the patient. Even though these are last options, physicians use a sleep apnea mask in conjunction with these treatment procedures to facilitate faster recovery.

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