Treatment Possibilities for Sleep Apnea

Sleep apnea is a condition where people stop breathing numerous times throughout the night. It leads to broken rest and further physiological problems when you are awake. If you suspect you have sleep apnea, see a doctor and find out about your treatment options.

The doctor will take a history of your symptoms and use diagnostic tools, mainly a sleep study, to confirm your sleep apnea and the type. There are two types of sleep apnea: obstructive sleep apnea and central sleep apnea. Both share similar symptoms but have a different cause. With obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), obstruction is caused by tissue in the back or top of the throat. With central sleep apnea (CSA), the brain forgets to signal the muscles responsible for breathing to work and you wake up repeatedly to restore breathing.

Treatments for sleep apnea are varied. The easiest and less invasive treatment is a CPAP machine. CPAP stands for continuous positive airway pressure. It is a device much like a mask that is worn on the face at night. Blowing air is forced into the nose and/or the mouth to keep the soft tissue in the back of the throat from blocking the airway. Because the air is continuous, sleep apnea is stopped whenever the CPAP is used and normal sleep resumes.

Symptoms of sleep apnea include things that you can control. Smoking, weight, drinking, exercise, and medicine use are all within your power to change. Just losing ten percent of your body weight can lessen the severity of your sleep apnea. Add exercise to that equation, and you have a body that is in better shape to combat the condition.

Some use sleeping aids to get a good night’s sleep. When you have sleep apnea, these drugs can be dangerous. It is the jerking that wakes you up as the body tries to restore your breathing.

What about surgery? Invasive techniques are often needed such that the cause will disappear along with your tissue. One such surgery is a tonsillectomy. It is the surgical removal of tonsils to treat obstructive sleep apnea.

Swollen tonsils can block the airway and make breathing difficult. Removing the enlarged lymph tissue opens up the airway. Adenoid tissue can also hang at the back of the throat. It is removed in a procedure called an adenoidectomy which is preformed with or without a tonsillectomy.

Those who snore a lot can reduce the symptom of snoring and obstructive breathing with a UPPP (uvulopalatopharyngoplasty). This procedure can be done using a laser to remove part of the soft palate and a portion of the uvula to widen the airway.

Pillar implants bolster up the soft palate so it doesn’t vibrate a lot and collapse over the airway during sleep. The procedure is less invasive than a UPPP and can be done in the doctor’s office.

Do you suffer from sleep apnea? Well, you have options for your treatment. Talk with your doctor and decide which is right for you.

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