Spotting the Symptoms of Sleep Apnoea

The most common form of sleep apnoea is obstructive sleep apnoea. It is more common than many people realise, because so many of its sufferers are unaware that anything is wrong. In fact, for many patients, it is a concerned partner who has endured night after night of interrupted sleep who first raises concerns.

One of the main symptoms of sleep apnoea is snoring. Although it is true that most sufferers do snore, that does not mean that all snorers have the disorder. Gentle snoring is common for many people and is not necessarily something to worry about. The snoring of OSA patients is normally punctuated with apnoeas: interruptions in breathing. These gaps in breathing mean that the sufferer's snoring is often punctuated with loud gasps and snorts.

In fact, these snorts are the gasps for breath of the sufferer who has momentarily woken after their brain has realised that their breathing has stopped. The condition may, as a result of snoring and blocked airways through the night, result in a sore or dry throat on waking.

Although patients do not normally have any recollection of the many moments of wakefulness they have experienced, they do often feel tired through the day, as though they have had a poor night's sleep. The general feeling of tiredness is something that some sufferers become accustomed to, causing a further barrier to the condition being spotted and diagnosed.

As a result of the tiredness caused by the condition, people with OSA often find that they are unable to concentrate as hard or think as clearly as they would expect. They may also find that they are irritable or snappy, with a shorter temper and less patience than they would normally expect. These symptoms can, of course, make the condition problematic for family and friends and may mean that OSA can affect relationships and family life.

As even non-sufferers can testify, headaches are often a consequence of being overly tired. This is another common symptom of OSA, although they are particularly prevalent in the mornings. Unfortunately, sleep apnoea may also increase a patient's likelihood of suffering from anxiety or depression, further impacting their life and relationships.

The many different sleep apnoea symptoms are very varied and this, in part, makes the condition difficult to diagnose. Patients who suspect that they are suffering with the condition should, in the first instance, contact their GP, who may choose to refer them to a sleep specialist.

To find out more about sleep apnoea symptoms, visit the DeVilbiss Healthcare website, which has resources for patients and professionals.

Original article

Obstructive Sleep Apnoea: A Guide

Obstructive Sleep Apnoea, which may also be known as OSA, is a sleep disorder which causes frequent interruptions in the breathing as the sufferer sleeps. The medical profession has two types of interruptions to the breathing: total blockages and partial blockages. Total blockages, referred to as apnoeas are caused when the tissue around the windpipe relaxes to such an extent that it completely blocks the air flow for ten seconds or more. Partial blockages, or hypopnoeas, are defined as blockages which reduce airflow by 50% for ten seconds or more.

Because sleep is a natural restorative activity which helps the brain and body to become re-energised, anything that limits an individual's sleep will leave that person feeling very tired. Most adults need between seven and eight hours of sleep each night, and around one fifth of that time is spent in the deepest part of the sleep cycle. Each interruption in breathing alerts the brain to the fact that something is amiss and this forces the brain to bring the individual into a lighter stage of sleep or even into a brief moment of wakefulness. Because these events can happen several times per hour throughout the night, sleep is seriously restricted, leaving sufferers combating day to day tiredness and irritability.

During the night, when the sufferer is awoken, the moment of wakefulness is so short that few people recall that they were even awake. This presents the problem that not many sufferers realise that anything is wrong for a long time and they often become accustomed to the tiredness that comes with the condition. It is thought that only around one quarter of sufferers have been diagnosed for this reason. Because loud snoring and snorting during sleep are common symptoms of obstructive sleep apnoea, some patients are only diagnosed when their partner expresses concern and persuades them to visit the doctor.

There are several types of treatment for the disorder, and many of them are very successful. It is important that anybody who suspects that they have obstructive sleep apnoea should seek treatment because in the long term it increases the risk of a number of serious conditions such as type two diabetes, strokes and heart attacks. Diagnosis is usually made by means of a sleep study and those people who smoke or who are overweight and are middle aged are in the higher risk category for developing obstructive sleep apnoea.

To find out more about obstructive sleep apnoea and the various treatment options available, visit the website of DeVilbiss Healthcare. They are a global healthcare company specialising in the treatment of sleep disorders. Their website can be found here: http://www.devilbisshc.com/

Original article

The Dangers of Sleep Apnoea for Drivers of Haulage Companies

There are plenty of dangers that face drivers working for haulage companies. Spending so much time out on the road, it's obvious that lorry drivers are exposed to greater risk than many other road users. One of the dangers that has only started to recently get the exposure it deserves is falling asleep at the wheel - and there are very obvious reasons as to why this would be a dangerous occurrence. With the unsociable hours that lorry drivers often keep, it's not just the sheer amount of miles they get through that raises their risks - they are also subject to punishing schedules as haulage companies struggle to keep up with demand. On top of this, there are certain medical conditions that can greatly increase drivers' risks.

Sleep Apnoea

Lorry drivers are considered particularly sensitive to sleep disorders, including sleep apnoea. Sleep apnoea is a sleeping disorder that is characterised by abnormal pauses in breathing or abnormally low breathing during sleep. Because the breathing stops, the body is forced to return to an almost waking state in order to get the process going again, meaning that sufferers endure very poor quality sleep. This can then cause a lack of alertness during the day, and instances of nodding off - the main risk for drivers working for haulage companies.

The Scale of the Problem

It's thought that driver fatigue is a contributing factor in over 10% of all crashes and near crashes. Studies have suggested that drivers who suffer from obstructive sleep apnoea, where the apnoea is caused by the slackness of the soft palate or other physical contributing factors, are considered to have a sevenfold increased risk of being involved in a crash on the road. Statistics vary regarding the prevelence of sleep apnoea amongst commercial drivers, with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration in the US suggesting the figure could be as high as 28%. There are said to be around 30,000 sufferers amongst the general population of the UK, although some estimates suggest that the true number could be 10 times higher.

Solving the Problem

Drivers and haulage companies should do what they can to make sure that anyone who might suffer from sleep apnoea seeks medical attention. Although sleep apnoea is dangerous, it is easy to treat, and sufferers report a much better quality of life after seeing their doctor. Getting a good night's sleep is not only safer, it leads to feeling far more rested, calm, alert and less irritable.

Norman Dulwich is a Correspondent for Haulage Exchange, the leading online trade network for haulage companies and drivers across the UK and Europe. It provides services for matching back loads and to buy and sell road transport and delivery work in the domestic and international markets.

Original article

Sleep Apnoea: Don't Ignore the Signs

Sleep apnoea (OSA) is little discussed considering its prevalence in the UK. Indeed, many people have never heard of it, although labour leader Ed Milliband's recent surgery brought the disorder into the public eye. Experts believe that somewhere between 2 and 4% of the UK population suffers from sleep apnoea, but that only a tenth of sufferers are diagnosed and receiving treatment. Considering the potentially serious complications and consequences associated with this disorder, this is worrying.

The problem with OSA is that sufferers tend to be unaware anything is wrong. The disorder does not strike whilst the sufferer is awake. It is when the individual sleeps that problems begin. Whilst the patient sleeps, the muscles surrounding the wind pipe relax, narrowing the space through which air can pass to the lungs. This causes loud snoring. However, sleep apnoea sufferers' windpipes become totally obstructed by the relaxed throat muscle and tissue, preventing any air from reaching the lungs. After a few seconds the brain becomes aware that there is a problem preventing air from reaching the lungs and pulls the sufferer gasping back into wakefulness. This moment of wakefulness is so brief that sufferers immediately fall back to sleep, and wake in the morning unaware that anything has occurred. Of course, over time this routine of waking several times through the night takes its toll and sleep apnoea patients suffer extreme tiredness and headaches. They may also become irritable, depressed or disinterested in sex. Unfortunately, too many put these symptoms down to other causes or simply become accustomed to them.

Those sufferers who share their bed or home with other people may have been told about their loud snoring. However a lack of awareness of the disorder leads many to assume it is simply snoring and not a cause for concern. In many cases partners become concerned by the gasping for breath they observe in their loved one and insist on a visit to the doctor.

Where loud snoring is a problem the cause will not necessarily be sleep apnoea, but there is a strong chance it is. Patients who are overweight, who smoke and who have larger neck measurements are more likely to have the disorder, so such patients should discuss the possibility of sleep apnoea when talking with a doctor about their snoring.

In the long term, diabetes, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease have all been associated with sleep apnoea. For this reason we should all be vigilant for family members who snore excessively loudly.

There are a number of great resources for sleep apnoea information on the internet. One is from a leading healthcare company, DeVilbiss Healthcare. Their site can be found at http://www.devilbisshc.com/

Original article