What is sleep apnoea?

Sleep apnoea: causes and symtoms

The term apnea (apnea during sleep) comes from the Greek (a-pnoe) and means “sleep without breath”.

Sleep apnoea are a group of diseases characterized by inadequate night’s rest, as embodied in multiple arousals (microarousals) that the patient does not perceive during sleep.

The patient has one or more pauses in breathing or shallow breaths while you sleep. The duration of such breaks may range from a few seconds to several minutes and may occur up to more than 30 times per hour. Normally, breathing returns to normal, sometimes with a loud snort.

For all these reasons, this sleep is not restful and the person feels tired and exhausted during the day. Sleep apnoeas can can also cause high blood pressure.

Sleep apnea are especially prevalent in overweight patients and a common sign of it is the nocturnal snoring, although they are difficult to diagnose because the person is asleep when he/she suffers apnoea. Apnoea can be caused by the obstruction (narrowing) of the upper airway or breathing disorders. There are other diseases, such as heart failure that can also trigger it.

Sleep apnoea treatment at SHA

SHA’s medical team has extensive experience in sleep medicine and disease management of sleep apnea.

First we proceed to diagnosis by nocturnal polygraphy and later the patient is advised witg the best treatment option. Such treatment can be by a positive pressure machine that is initially set during his/her stay at SHA, and then it can be controlled at home with a service offered by SHA.