Description

Sleep apnea (also spelled sleep apnoea) is a sleep-related disorder characterized by abnormal breathing patterns during sleep. People with sleep apnea have reductions or pauses in breathing for brief periods during sleep. While this may cause a person to awaken periodically and reduce sleep quality, the sleeper may not fully wake up and remain unaware that their nighttime breathing is abnormal. Several type of sleep apnea exist, categorized by the cause of breathing disruption. The most common is "obstructive sleep apnea" (OSA), in which the upper airway is obstructed due to loss of tone in the pharyngeal musculature. OSA can be defined as the presence of five or more obstructive events (either apnoeas or hypopnoeas) per hour of sleep.

Effects

Obstruction of the airways causes the sleeper to wake up (usually not fully) and take several deep breaths. As this happens frequently (many times per hour), it reduces sleep quality and may have some (or all) of the following effects on the person: