Informative Speech On Sleep Apnea
What is sleep apnoea?
When you sleep, your throat muscles and tongue relax, blocking or partially blocking your airway. Sleep apnoea occurs when your breathing is blocked or partially blocked resulting in paused or shallow breathing. Frequently, normal breathing restarts, sometimes with a loud snort or choking sound. As this happens, you will move out of deep into light sleep. This can occur 30 times or more an hour.
Obstructive sleep apnoea is the most common form of sleep apnea.
You should consider seeing a specialist, an Ear, Nose, Throat (ENT) surgeon if you or your partner notices the following symptoms.
Your partner notices that you
• snores loudly and heavily
• toss and turn restlessly in the night
• stop breathing, gasps, …show more content…
or chokes during sleep.
You may
• feel sleepy during the day.
• fall asleep at inappropriate times, such as while you are talking or eating.
• have morning or night headaches
• wake up frequently to urinate
Adults should sleep 7 or more hours per night on a regular basis to promote optimal health. What are the risks of sleep apnoea treatment?
When you stop breathing, your oxygen level in your blood reduces and carbon dioxide level increases, making your heart work harder, affecting your heart rate and nervous system.
This may lead to problems such as :
• high blood pressure and heart disease.
• increase your risk of having a stroke
• greater difficulty for people with diabetes to control their blood sugar.
The ENT surgeon will discuss your personal and family history with you. Your specialist is likely to ask questions regarding your symptoms, if you stop breathing during the night and how often this occurs, how your partner describes the symptoms, and if there was anything you have done that might have made the symptoms worse or better.
The following information should be prepared for the appointment:
• Your symptoms and how long you have had these symptoms
• All medication currently being consumed including dosage, vitamins, and other supplements
The ENT surgeon may order an evaluation which often involves overnight monitoring of your breathing and other body functions during sleep. Home sleep testing may also be an option.
• Nocturnal polysomnography where you are connected to equipment that monitors your blood oxygen levels, breathing patterns, body movements, and activities of heart, lung and brain while you …show more content…
sleep.
• Home sleep tests where you can be monitored for your heart rate, blood oxygen level, airflow and breathing patterns. Portable monitoring devices may not be effective in all cases of sleep apnoea. Your specialist may recommend polysomnography even if your initial results are normal.
If you do have sleep apnoea, your test results will show decreases in your oxygen level during apneas and subsequent rises as you awake.
For mild cases, your ENT surgeon could suggest life style changes such as weight loss or smoking cessation as initial steps.
For moderate to severe cases, the following treatments may be prescribed.
• Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) which is a mask-like device that pumps air at a pressure slightly greater than that of the surrounding air, to keep your upper airway passages open, preventing apnea and snoring. Variations of such devices include o Auto-CPAP which automatically adjusts the pressure while you're sleeping o BiPAP which applies more pressure when you inhale and less when you exhale.
• Expiratory positive airway pressure (EPAP) which are single use devices placed over each nostril before bedtime. Air flows freely in but is forced out through small holes in the device, keeping the airway open.
• Oral appliances that are designed to keep your throat open by bringing your jaw forward.
• Surgery is an option if other treatments have failed. o Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty is a procedure where you ENT surgeon removes tissue from the rear of your mouth and top of your throat, including tonsils and adenoids to stop throat structures from vibrating and causing
snoring. o Maxillomandibular advancement is done to move your jaw forward, creating more behind the tongue and soft palate, reducing the possibility of an obstruction. o implants are surgically placed under local anesthesia, in the soft palate
Besides treatment, some lifestyle changes such as those below can help you manage your sleep apnoea:
• losing excess weight can help relieve your throat constriction
• exercise can help ease some of the symptoms even if you do not lose weight
• avoid alcohol and sleeping pills as these relax the muscles of your throat, interfering with your breathing
• sleep on your side or abdomen rather than on your back as sleeping on your back can cause your tongue and soft palate to rest against the back of your throat, blocking your airway
• stop smoking as it worsens sleep apnea.
When you sleep, your throat muscles and tongue relax, blocking or partially blocking your airway. Sleep apnoea occurs when your breathing is blocked or partially blocked resulting in paused or shallow breathing. Frequently, normal breathing restarts, sometimes with a loud snort or choking sound. As this happens, you will move out of deep into light sleep. This can occur 30 times or more an hour.
Obstructive sleep apnoea is the most common form of sleep apnea.
You should consider seeing a specialist, an Ear, Nose, Throat (ENT) surgeon if you or your partner notices the following symptoms.
Your partner notices that you
• snores loudly and heavily
• toss and turn restlessly in the night
• stop breathing, gasps, …show more content…
or chokes during sleep.
You may
• feel sleepy during the day.
• fall asleep at inappropriate times, such as while you are talking or eating.
• have morning or night headaches
• wake up frequently to urinate
Adults should sleep 7 or more hours per night on a regular basis to promote optimal health. What are the risks of sleep apnoea treatment?
When you stop breathing, your oxygen level in your blood reduces and carbon dioxide level increases, making your heart work harder, affecting your heart rate and nervous system.
This may lead to problems such as :
• high blood pressure and heart disease.
• increase your risk of having a stroke
• greater difficulty for people with diabetes to control their blood sugar.
The ENT surgeon will discuss your personal and family history with you. Your specialist is likely to ask questions regarding your symptoms, if you stop breathing during the night and how often this occurs, how your partner describes the symptoms, and if there was anything you have done that might have made the symptoms worse or better.
The following information should be prepared for the appointment:
• Your symptoms and how long you have had these symptoms
• All medication currently being consumed including dosage, vitamins, and other supplements
The ENT surgeon may order an evaluation which often involves overnight monitoring of your breathing and other body functions during sleep. Home sleep testing may also be an option.
• Nocturnal polysomnography where you are connected to equipment that monitors your blood oxygen levels, breathing patterns, body movements, and activities of heart, lung and brain while you …show more content…
sleep.
• Home sleep tests where you can be monitored for your heart rate, blood oxygen level, airflow and breathing patterns. Portable monitoring devices may not be effective in all cases of sleep apnoea. Your specialist may recommend polysomnography even if your initial results are normal.
If you do have sleep apnoea, your test results will show decreases in your oxygen level during apneas and subsequent rises as you awake.
For mild cases, your ENT surgeon could suggest life style changes such as weight loss or smoking cessation as initial steps.
For moderate to severe cases, the following treatments may be prescribed.
• Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) which is a mask-like device that pumps air at a pressure slightly greater than that of the surrounding air, to keep your upper airway passages open, preventing apnea and snoring. Variations of such devices include o Auto-CPAP which automatically adjusts the pressure while you're sleeping o BiPAP which applies more pressure when you inhale and less when you exhale.
• Expiratory positive airway pressure (EPAP) which are single use devices placed over each nostril before bedtime. Air flows freely in but is forced out through small holes in the device, keeping the airway open.
• Oral appliances that are designed to keep your throat open by bringing your jaw forward.
• Surgery is an option if other treatments have failed. o Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty is a procedure where you ENT surgeon removes tissue from the rear of your mouth and top of your throat, including tonsils and adenoids to stop throat structures from vibrating and causing
snoring. o Maxillomandibular advancement is done to move your jaw forward, creating more behind the tongue and soft palate, reducing the possibility of an obstruction. o implants are surgically placed under local anesthesia, in the soft palate
Besides treatment, some lifestyle changes such as those below can help you manage your sleep apnoea:
• losing excess weight can help relieve your throat constriction
• exercise can help ease some of the symptoms even if you do not lose weight
• avoid alcohol and sleeping pills as these relax the muscles of your throat, interfering with your breathing
• sleep on your side or abdomen rather than on your back as sleeping on your back can cause your tongue and soft palate to rest against the back of your throat, blocking your airway
• stop smoking as it worsens sleep apnea.