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How does sleep apnea occur?
Obstructive Sleep Apnea occurs when muscles of the soft palate and throat
relax during sleep, obstructing the airway and making breathing difficult
and noisy (snoring). Eventually the airway walls collapse, blocking airflow
entirely, which results in breathing pause or apnea. The muscles of the
diaphragm and chest work harder to try to restore the breathing. This
temporarily interrupts sleep, which activates the throat muscles and opens
the airway. There is often an audible gasp noted with this. This cycle
repeats itself sometimes hundreds of times a night. Each time breathing
stops during sleep, the oxygen level in the blood falls, causing the heart
to work harder to circulate the blood. Since oxygen is the fuel for the
cardiovascular system, this creates stress on the heart, which leads to
an increase in the blood pressure and may result in irregular heartbeats,
hypertension, heart disease and stroke if it remains untreated.
Consequences of sleep apnea, if left untreated:
- High blood pressure
- Heart problems
- Heart attack
- Stroke
- Car accidents and work-related accidents due to sleepiness
- Poor quality of life
- OSA patients, prior to diagnosis and treatment, use 2.5 times more health
care dollars than patients without OSA
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