Related topics: patients , blood pressure , sleep , body mass index
Sleep apnea
hideSleep apnea (or sleep apnoea in British English) is a sleep disorder characterized by pauses in breathing during sleep. Each episode, called an apnea (Greek: ἄπνοια (ápnoia), from α- (a-), privative, πνέειν (pnéein), to breathe), lasts long enough so that one or more breaths are missed, and such episodes occur repeatedly throughout sleep. The standard definition of any apneic event includes a minimum 10 second interval between breaths, with either a neurological arousal (a 3-second or greater shift in EEG frequency, measured at C3, C4, O1, or O2), a blood oxygen desaturation of 3-4% or greater, or both arousal and desaturation. Sleep apnea is diagnosed with an overnight sleep test called a polysomnogram, or a "Sleep Study".
Clinically significant levels of sleep apnea are defined as five or more episodes per hour of any type of apnea (from the polysomnogram). There are three distinct forms of sleep apnea: central, obstructive, and complex (i.e., a combination of central and obstructive) constituting 0.4%, 84% and 15% of cases respectively. Breathing is interrupted by the lack of respiratory effort in central sleep apnea; in obstructive sleep apnea, breathing is interrupted by a physical block to airflow despite respiratory effort. In complex (or "mixed") sleep apnea, there is a transition from central to obstructive features during the events themselves.
Regardless of type, the individual with sleep apnea is rarely aware of having difficulty breathing, even upon awakening. Sleep apnea is recognized as a problem by others witnessing the individual during episodes or is suspected because of its effects on the body (sequelae). Symptoms may be present for years (or even decades) without identification, during which time the sufferer may become conditioned to the daytime sleepiness and fatigue associated with significant levels of sleep disturbance.
For more information about Sleep apnea, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with sleep apnea
Ecstasy may be linked to sleep apnea
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Dec 02, 2009 |
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New research shows that recreational users of the drug known as ecstasy may be at a higher risk for sleep apnea. The study is published in the December 2, 2009, online issue of Neurology.
Obesity increases the risk for obstructive sleep apnea in adolescents, but not in younger children
Dec 15, 2009 |
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A study in the Dec. 15 issue of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine shows that being overweight or obese increases the risk for developing obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in adolescents but not in younger children.
Search results for sleep apnea
Sleeping off childhood?
Dec 23, 2009 |
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Are your 11- and 12-year-olds staying up later, then dozing off at school the next day? Parents and educators who notice poor sleeping patterns in their children should take note of new research from Tel Aviv University ― ...
Link Between Poor Sleep and Poor Learning in Older Adults Investigated
Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry
Dec 22, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (2) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst are trying to decode why aging prevents sleep from enhancing memory. Rebecca Spencer, assistant professor of psychology, says she is trying to isolate ...
Sniffing out clues to dogs' compulsive behavior
Dec 22, 2009 |
3.8 / 5 (4) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- At first glance, a dog chasing its tail seems a harmless, if fruitless, pursuit. But for many dogs and their owners, the habit has a dark side, one that means endless hours and energy spent ...
The next medical frontier: nano-surgery
Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine
Dec 21, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Engineering professor's nanorobot could be performing non-invasive surgical procedures on patients with tumors within the next decade.
Bourbon versus vodka: Bourbon hurts more the next day, performance is the same
Dec 18, 2009 |
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Many alcoholic beverages contain byproducts of the materials used in the fermenting process. These byproducts are called "congeners," complex organic molecules with toxic effects including acetone, acetaldehyde, fusel oil, ...
Want to live well? Harvard experts offer pragmatic pointers on getting healthy and staying there
Dec 17, 2009 |
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You are what you eat. You're also how you feel, how you exercise, how you sleep, how you handle money, how you relate to people, and what you value.
Are patients losing sleep over blood pressure monitors?
Dec 17, 2009 |
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A widely used test for measuring nighttime blood pressure may interfere with patients' sleep, thus affecting the results of the test, reports a study in an upcoming issue of Clinical Journal of the American Society of Ne ...
Study reveals chemo's toxicity to brain, possible treatment
Dec 17, 2009 |
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Researchers have developed a novel animal model showing that four commonly used chemotherapy drugs disrupt the birth of new brain cells, and that the condition could be partially reversed with the growth factor IGF-1.
Brain surgery evolves to destroy rogue blood vessels
Dec 16, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Over three decades, a world-recognized medical team at UC San Diego Medical Center has spurred the evolution of a complex surgery to destroy dangerous clusters of arteries and veins in the brain. Integrating ...
Exploring energy efficiency in multi-scale computing systems
Dec 16, 2009 |
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The University of California, San Diego and nine other universities are members of a new research center charged with finding ways to improve the design of computing systems ranging from large data centers ...
List of search results for sleep apnea
