Sleep Apnea Blog

Posts Tagged ‘problems’

I seem to sometimes wake up with a pounding heart, but I have been to the doctor twice and had normal ECGs and blood oxygen levels.

Hello!

I will try to answer to your question as simple as possible.

If you have sleep apnea disorder, your heart may be affected by serious health problems, such as:
-heart arrhythmia, or abnormal heart rhythm. It means that heart may have long pauses between beats, even 2 or 3 seconds long, or extra beats.
-congestive heart failure, in which the heart fails to adequately maintain the circulation of blood. So your heart will deliver low blood oxygen level to the body tissues.

You need to remember that all this heart problems appear most of the time during sleep, when you have apnea episodes.

With CPAP treatment, all this problem will disappear.

I hope this information will help you.

My grandfather is finding it hard to breathe while wearing the mask that is on his CPAP machine. He has a mask and just the tube for the nose but both make him feel like he’s having a hard time breathing, and he’s worried about wearing it at night.

That usually happens for the first few weeks after getting the machine. After awhile he will get used to it. If not, then he should see a doctor because maybe the mask is not sized properly.

My daughter wakes up every morning at 4am she is 1 and a half someone has suggested to me that it could be sleep apnea. What are the symptoms of this and what is it? Thanks

Sleep apnea is any period of time where ther is no breathing while asleep. Usuly the time period is a minimum 10 seconds.

The most common kind of sleep apnea is called Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome. It is characterized by repetitive episodes of upper airway obstruction that occur during sleep, usually associated with a reduction in blood oxygen saturation.

symptoms:
excessive daytime sleepiness
frequent episodes of obstructed breathing during sleep. (The patient may be unaware of this symptom — usually the parents are extremely aware of this).

Associated features may include:
snoring – loud, squeaky, raspy
nocturnal snorting, gasping, choking (may wake self up)
restless sleep
heavy irregular breathing
excessive perspiring during sleep
severe bedwetting
bad dreams (nightmares)
night terrors
sleeps with mouth open, causing a dry mouth upon awakening
chest retraction during sleep in young children (chest pulls in)
sleeps in strange positions
confusion upon awakening
morning headaches
unrefreshing sleep
excessive daytime sleepiness
may develop high blood pressure
may be overweight or underweight
learning problems
excessive irritability
change in personality
depression
difficulty concentrating
Developmental problems
failure to thrive or grow
frequent upper respiratory infections
hyperactive behavior

How serious is sleep apnea?
It is a potentially life-threatening condition that requires immediate medical attention. The risks of undiagnosed obstructive in children with sleep apnea include learning problems, developmental problems, behavior problems and in some cases, failure to grow, heart problems and high blood pressure. In addition, obstructive sleep apnea causes daytime sleepiness that can result in personality changes, lost productivity in school and interpersonal relationship problems. A child with sleep apnea may lag behind in many areas of development. The child may become frustrated and depressed. The severity of the symptoms may be mild, moderate or severe.

How does the doctor determine if my child has Obstructive Sleep Apnea?

A sleep test, called polysomnography is usually done to diagnose sleep apnea. There are two kinds of polysomnograms. An overnight polysomnography test involves monitoring brain waves, muscle tension, eye movement, respiration, oxygen level in the blood and audio monitoring. (for snoring, gasping, etc.) The second kind of polysomnography test is a home monitoring test. A Sleep Technologist hooks your child up to all the electrodes and instructs you on how to record your child’s sleep with a computerized polysomnograph that you take home and return in the morning. They are painless tests that are usually covered by insurance.

How is Sleep Apnea treated?

In children, simply removing the tonsils or adenoids may take care of the problem.

Sleep Apnea in children where removing the tonsils or adenoids does not take care of the problem is usually treated with a C-PAP (continous positive airway pressure) or Bi-Level positive airway pressure. C-PAP is a machine that blows air into your nose via a nose mask, keeping the airway open and unobstructed. Bi-Level has an inspiratory pressure that is higher than the expiratory pressure. The sleep doctor will "prescribe" the pressure and a home healthcare company will set it up and provide training in its use and maintenance.

When your child needs a machine, it can be quite intimidating. A C-PAP machine requires some care and a period of adjustment, but the benefits of C-PAP therapy are worth the inconvenience. C-PAP is NOT a venilator, it merely keeps the airway open so your child can breathe easily. It is not a complicated machine like some mentioned in the above link to kidshealth organization, nor do you have to worry about 24-hour nursing care or your child being in intensive care unless there are more complicated problems. A one night stay in a sleep clinic to monitor the child’s breathing is generally all that is required. Here are some tips if your child comes home on a machine. A C-PAP machine may be "prescribed" for your child. A home healthcare company that contracts with your insurance will provide the machine and show you how it works and how to clean and maintain it.

Find out about the different manufacturers who provide respiratory equipment for obstructive sleep apnea.

Some children have facial deformities that may cause the sleep apnea. It simply may be that their jaw is smaller than it should be or they could have a smaller opening at the back of the throat. Some children have enlarged tonsils, a large tongue or some other tissues partially blocking the airway. Fixing a deviated septum may help to open the nasal passages. Removing the tonsils and adenoids or polyps may help also. Children are much more likely to have their tonsils and adenoids removed to solve the problem.

The only available treatment for severe apnea until the early 1980′s was a tracheostomy. A tracheostomy is a surgical procedure where a small hole is cut in the neck and a tube with a valve is inserted into the hole. During the day the valve is closed so the person can speak. At night, the valve is opened, thus avoiding the obstructions. This procedure is only used today as a last resort or to avoid respiratory distress, or other serious medical complications (Your child would have to be extremely sick to require this).

My 8 year old son stops breathing on and off all through the night and he snores loudly. He gasps for air through out the night and wets to bed. He is also on medication for ADHD. I have heard there is a link between sleep apnea and ADHD symptoms. Does anyone else know anything about this?

Yes, a friend of my daughter’s was diagnosed with ADHD but then turned out to have sleep apnea. His ADHD symptoms were severe enough that he ended up repeating a grade … but when they removed his tonsils and the sleep apnea cleared up, so did the ADHD symptoms.

It’s very hard to concentrate if you haven’t actually had a good night’s sleep. Definitely get the sleep apnea treated; it may make a substantial difference.

is there anybody out there that have sleep apnea if what treatment do you use

1. You need to have a sleep study done by a sleep specialist.
2. A CPAP or a BiPAP is the only treatment….while losing weight will be suggested…the IMMEDIATE treatment is the CPAP. It’s not that uncomfortable !
3. Breath-Rite strips are useless for someone who REALLY has sleep apnea. And the mis-conception that they help with sleep apnea is not only ignorant; but DANGEROUS !
4. Most throat surgeries won’t help.
5. A person doesn’t have to be overweight to have sleep apnea. There are different kinds of sleep apnea.
6. Sleep apnea can cause many health problems; high blood pressure, and heart problems are just a few. People with sleep apnea can have their drivers’ license, car insurance and car tags revoked if you are not doing your treatments !

I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea 3 years ago; at my top weight of 333 pounds. I was averaging 63 events per hour, and had heart problems and high blood pressure from it. I had a gastric bypass, have lost 135 pounds so far; and just had another sleep study last week….NO MORE SLEEP APNEA !!

Please see a sleep specialist and follow their advice !

Is there a way to quickly get rid of the lines and marks my CPAP sometimes makes on my face? It can get embarassing having to go out in public with these indentations from the mask. Thanks.

There are different mask as everyone face is different. Visit sleepnet.com for a wealth of information.

I found a mask a like, I wake up with the marks but they are generally gone by the time I get to work. It is the least of my problems.

I just found a mask called a sleep weaver, that I want to try.

http://www.cpapusa.com/item.php?productcode=100201&name=SleepWeaver+Nasal+Mask

It’s estimated that some 12 million Americans suffer from sleep apnea. Most people who have sleep apnea are given a mask to wear at night that helps them sleep. In the first study of it’s kind, Doctors have found it may be helping to heal the heart too.

Duration : 0:1:30

Read the rest of this entry »

It’s estimated that some 12 million Americans suffer from sleep apnea. Most people who have sleep apnea are given a mask to wear at night that helps them sleep. In the first study of it’s kind, Doctors have found it may be helping to heal the heart too.

Duration : 0:1:30

Read the rest of this entry »

Sleep apnea is caused by airways that are being blocked by a tongue that relaxes, and other contributing factors include a person being overweight and a person sleeping on their back. Find out why it’s important to see a general practitioner about sleep apnea with help from a psychologist in this free video on sleep apnea.

Expert: Robert B. Hernandez
Contact: www.discoveringmyself.com
Bio: Robert B. Hernandez, PsyD, received his doctorate in clinical psychology in 2001.
Filmmaker: Paul Muller

Duration : 0:1:14

Read the rest of this entry »