Obstructive sleep apnea is a sleep disorder that affects many young children in the United States. The disorder, marked by blockage of the upper respiratory tract, causes patients to experience pauses in breathing while they sleep. Obstruction could be caused by structural deformities in the throat and nose or other physical problems. Typically, children diagnosed with sleep apnea should seek out medical treatment immediately, because inadequate blood-oxygen levels that occur as a result of irregular breathing could lead to significant developmental issues as the child matures.

What are the Symptoms of Sleep Apnea in Children?

Parents of children with sleep apnea will often notice that their kids exhibit irregular nighttime breathing. The child might stop breathing for long periods of time and then suddenly gasp or make a choking sound, waking themselves up. Children with obstructive sleep apnea will sometimes snore and sweat during sleep as well. During the day, the child may feel very tired as a result of poor sleep the night before. Other conditions associated with obstructive sleep apnea in children include:

• Wetting the bed
• Hyperactive behavior
• Frequently diagnosed upper respiratory infections
• Developmental problems
• Trouble concentrating and learning at school
• Problems with depression
• Irritability
• Abnormal weight gain or loss
• High blood pressure
• Sleeping in abnormal positions
• Confusion
• A tendency to pull or retract the chest inward at night
• Night terrors
• Nightmares
• Restlessness at night

How Do I Know If My Child Has Sleep Apnea?

Monitoring your child’s sleep patterns overnight either at home with a special sleep study kit or at a professional sleep lab is a great way to find out whether he or she has obstructive sleep apnea. During any such sleep study, your child’s brain activity, breathing patterns, heart rate and body movement will be observed carefully for signs of obstructed breathing. A sleep study is a non-invasive and painless test that most children will be able to tolerate without distress. You can order this test, also called a polysomnography, at any sleep center. Most insurance companies will cover the cost.

What Treatment is Available for My Child’s Sleep Apnea?

Most cases of obstructive sleep apnea in children can be traced back to enlarged tonsils or adenoids. The removal of these blocking structures usually cures the sleep disorder completely. However, when this minor and very common surgery does not fix nighttime breathing, parents do have the option of giving their child appropriate respiratory equipment at night. There is a device called a CPAP machine designed to keep the airways open with pressurized air throughout the night. CPAP, or continuous positive airway pressure, is administered to the child through a simple mask attached to the CPAP machine. CPAP is the gold standard of treatment for sleep apnea, but unfortunately many children feel intimidated by the device or may feel restricted by it; but overall, the technique is well tolerated and very effective. More invasive sleep apnea surgery may be suggested as a last resort for children with severe sleep apnea who do not respond well to CPAP. There is also family counseling available to help children get used to using their CPAP machines on a nightly basis. Whatever treatment you ultimately decide to go with, the first step is to have the disorder diagnosed. If you suspect your child is suffering from sleep apnea, contact a local sleep clinic immediately.

Sleep apnoea is one of many sleep disorders which affects sufferers’ ability to get a good night’s kip. It causes disrupted breathing during sleep, which in turn leads to a restless night in bed.

When someone suffers from sleep apnoea, they often find their airflow is blocked for around ten seconds or so, when the throat’s muscles and soft tissues relax too much, resulting in this blockage. Women are affected by the condition, but not as much as men, and it tends to impact most on middle-aged people – in the 34 to 54 age bracket.

It is a disorder which is fairly easy to treat, but it’s advisable to get help as soon as possible if you think you are a sufferer, because it can sometimes be dangerous. People with the condition often develop high blood pressure and this leads to a higher risk of cardiovascular problems, such as a stroke or heart attack. Some simple lifestyle changes can have an impact on less severe cases of sleep apnoea. You might want to try losing some weight if you’re obese, you should also try to quit smoking and drink less. Read The Full Story…

The doctors want you to know that sleep apnea is a contributing factor to high blood pressure, stroke, heart attack, obesity, arrhythmias and is the major cause of daytime sleepiness. It is a chronic condition that causes the sufferer to experience multiple pauses in the breathing while asleep due to obstruction of the airway. There are many sleep apnea treatment options of which the most universally effective is surgery performed by a doctor experienced in ear nose and throat surgery.

Before surgery is attempted, there are many other possible solutions to a sleep apnea problem such as lifestyle changes, mouthpieces and breathing devices. For the mildest cases of sleep apnea, simple lifestyle changes such as losing weight, sleep in one’s side, avoiding alcohol or medications that make one sleepy may well be enough to fix the problem.

Others may have to include a mouthpiece in their treatment. A custom-fit plastic mouthpiece made by a dentist or orthodontist can position the lower jaw and tongue to prevent airway obstruction. Moderate cases of sleep apnea may require a CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) machine to blow air into the throat.

Then there is surgery to shrink, stiffen, or remove excess tissue can bring permanent relieve to the problem of sleep apnea by eliminating its cause. This surgery can in some cases even be an ear dizziness treatment

Do you often get up in the middle of the night? Are you feeling exhausted most of the times if you are awake? Does your partner protest that your snoring wakes them up at night? If you answer yes to these questions then you could be showing sleep apnea symptoms.

So how can I tell if i am afflicted with sleep apnea? Well one of the first symptoms is getting up in the middle of the night, and whenever you do get do you often feel out of breath, like you were running.

Secondly constantly feeling exhausted or drained during standard hours when you should be awake is another apnea symptom. There are some individuals that get a excellent night’s rest but will still feel exhausted during the daytime.

If your other half frequently complains about how your snoring keeps them awake at night, then obviously that may be a sleep apnea symptom. In truth you might say that snoring is the sign to keep an eye open for. People snore because their airways are obstructed while sleeping.

Also persons affected by sleep apnea will whine of headaches in the day. Generally this symptom will affect most apnea sufferers.

it’s vital to identify that healthful way of life will lead to healthy sleeping. So it won’t shock you that chunky folk tend to have a larger chance of going through sleep apnea than others.

Many analysts have proven that indulging in alcohol just before bedtime will stop you from getting a excellent night’s rest. Therefore alcohol will only serve to become worse your respiring pattern which is in a terrible state. Read The Full Story…

The human body was not made to live at 18,000 feet. Altitude sickness occurs when people go to a higher altitude too quickly and do not get enough oxygen in the air they breathe. Common symptoms include having a headache and not feeling like Oxygen is so scarce at that altitude that few plants or animals can live. For visiting humans the thin air fogs the mind, makes small actions arduous and keeps cuts and infections from healing. Even the most sedentary activity of all, sleeping, is severely disturbed in this alien environment. At altitude normal people often develop periodic breathing in sleep – regularly recurring periods ofhyperpnea and apnea. Read The Full Story…

The symptoms of sleep apnea. People with sleep apnea usually snore loudly and have restless sleep. Often these symptoms are not noticed by the person with sleep apnea but by the partner. The partner may also notice pauses in breathing and snoring lasting between 10 seconds and a minute. Each pause ends with a very deep gasping or snoring noise and a brief awakening as the person struggles to breathe. As a result of the problems during sleep, the person with sleep apnea is usually very sleepy in the day and may wake in the morning feeling “hungover”. As the day progresses the lack of sleep may take its toll and they struggle to stay awake. In passive situations, such as watching TV, this may not be a problem but it can affect the person’s ability to concentrate and function at work. It can be extremely dangerous if it occurs while driving. Other symptoms which can occur in untreated sleep apnea are impotence, personality changes, depression, irritability, loss of memory and concentration and increased frequency of urination at night. Read The Full Story…

Sleep Apnea. Apnea means absence of breath. Sleep apnea occurs when the airway from the mouth to the lung collapses during sleep. The person with sleep apnea may have hundreds of these episodes throughout the night, disrupting their sleep and reducing oxygen supply to vital organs. Sleep apnea is a common condition affecting about 5% of adults. Fortunately effective treatment is available and once treated the person with sleep apnea leads a normal healthy life.
The symptoms of sleep apnea. People with sleep apnea usually snore loudly and have restless sleep. Often these symptoms are not noticed by the person with sleep apnea but by the partner. The partner may also notice pauses in breathing and snoring lasting between 10 seconds and a minute. Each pause ends with a very deep gasping or snoring noise and a brief awakening as the person struggles to breathe. As a result of the problems during sleep, the person with sleep apnea is usually very sleepy in the day and may wake in the morning feeling “hungover”. As the day progresses the lack of sleep may take its toll and they struggle to stay awake. In passive situations, such as watching TV, this may not be a problem but it can affect the person’s ability to concentrate and function at work. It can be extremely dangerous if it occurs while driving. Other symptoms which can occur in untreated sleep apnea are impotence, personality changes, depression, irritability, loss of memory and concentration and increased frequency of urination at night. Read The Full Story…