What is SLEEP APNEA? Symptom , Causes, Types

Rigomo Team

Sat, 04 Oct 2025

Sleep apnea affects approximately 25% of men and nearly 10% of women. This can affect people of all ages, including infants and children, as well as those over 50 and those who are overweight. Sleep apnea is a serious sleep disorder that causes breathing to stop and start repeatedly. If you snore loudly and are tired even after a full night's sleep, you may have sleep apnea.

If left untreated, this can lead to serious health issues like high blood pressure, stroke, cardiomyopathy, diabetes, and heart attacks. Sleep apnea causes breathing to stop repeatedly during sleep, resulting in loud snoring and daytime exhaustion, even with a full night's sleep. Anyone can develop sleep apnea, but it is most common in overweight older men.

Sleep apnea can cause:

• Oxygen depletion regularly
• Changes in carbon dioxide concentrations.
• Pressure changes in the chest have direct effects on the heart.
• Inflammation markers are at an all-time high.

There are two types of sleep apnea:

• Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when your upper airway becomes blocked repeatedly while you sleep, causing airflow to be reduced or completely stopped. The most common type of sleep apnea is this. Obesity, large tonsils, or changes in hormone levels can all narrow your airway and increase your risk of obstructive sleep apnea.
• Central sleep apnea occurs when your brain fails to send the necessary signals to allow you to breathe. Central sleep apnea is caused by health conditions that affect how your brain controls your airway and chest muscles.

Symptoms of sleep apnea

Rather than the patient, the bed partner is often the first to notice the signs of OSA. The most common signs and symptoms of OSA are as follows:

·       Snoring

·       Daytime drowsiness or exhaustion

·       Sleep problems, such as frequent nighttime awakenings

·       When you first wake up, you may experience a choking or gasping sensation.

·       You may have a dry mouth or a sore throat when you wake up.

·       Impaired cognition, such as irritability, forgetfulness, or difficulty concentrating.

·       Emotional disturbances (depression or anxiety).

·       Nighttime sweats

·       Urination in the middle of the night.

·       Impotence when it comes to sexual activity.

·       Migraines.

People with central sleep apnea are more likely to have recurrent awakenings or insomnia, though they may also wake up with a choking or gasping sensation. Symptoms in children may not be as noticeable and include:

·       Poor academic performance

•       Sluggishness or sleepiness in the classroom is frequently misinterpreted as laziness.

•       Mouth breathing and swallowing problems during the day.

•       When inhaling, the ribcage moves inward.

•       Sleeping in unusual positions, such as on one's hands and knees or with the neck hyper-extended.

•       Excessive night sweating

•       Behavioral and learning disorders (hyperactivity, attention deficits).

•       Bedwetting.

This condition can affect anyone, but certain factors make you more vulnerable:

·       Being overweight

·       Having a large neck circumference can narrow your airways

·       Having a narrowed airway due to large tonsils or adenoids that you inherited or developed

·       Smoking

·       Use of alcohol, sedatives, or tranquilizers

·       Nasal congestion

·       Type 2 diabetes, congestive heart failure, high blood pressure, Parkinson's disease, PCOS, hormonal disorders, prior stroke, or chronic lung diseases like asthma are examples of medical conditions.

Conservative treatments: Conservative therapy may be all that is required in mild cases of obstructive sleep apnea. People who are overweight can benefit from losing weight. Alcohol and certain sleeping pills should be avoided by people with obstructive sleep apnea. Breathing pauses occur only when some patients with mild obstructive sleep apnea sleep on their backs. In such cases, a wedge pillow or other devices that allow them to sleep on their side may be beneficial. Nasal sprays or breathing strips should be used by people with sinus problems or nasal congestion to reduce snoring and improve airflow for more comfortable nighttime breathing. For all patients with sleep disorders, avoiding sleep deprivation is critical.

When to consult a doctor: Although loud snoring may indicate a serious problem, not everyone with sleep apnea snores. Consult your doctor if you have signs or symptoms of sleep apnea. Consult your doctor if you're tired, sleepy, or irritable due to a sleep problem.