What Makes Sleep Apnea So Dangerous

Posted by Southcoast Dental on February 13th, 2021

In the simplest of terms, sleep apnea is a disorder and a severe one at that. It obstructs your breathing and prevents you from sleeping deeply. This issue occurs when a person experiences trouble breathing while sleeping. The entire event happens involuntarily, and it takes place every few seconds. Sometimes, it may even last for a minute. One should always opt for proper Sleep Apnea Treatment in Tustin if it happens more than thirty times in an hour.

Severity

The specialists of Denture Implants Santa Ana say that sleep apnea not only prevents you from sleeping, but from breathing as well. As already mentioned earlier, it may keep you from breathing for a few seconds to a minute. In some instances, it can happen thirty times or more in one hour. Since you keep waking up several times at night, you feel drowsy and tired in the morning. In the beginning, it remains nothing more than a minor sleep disturbance that most people ignore. However, with time, it can turn into a severe disorder that may further lead to strokes or heart diseases if left untreated.

The types

Sleep apnea can be of different types. The most common one is obstructive sleep apnea, where a blockage in the airways, such as the nasal tract or throat, triggers this condition. The soft tissues within your throat collapse when you sleep and cause you to snore loudly. Another type of sleep apnea worth mentioning is central sleep apnea. It results from ineffective respiratory functioning. As you know, the brain oversees the functioning of every organ. When it fails to send signals to the muscles controlling your breathing, you encounter the symptoms of sleep apnea. Complex sleep apnea is yet another variant of this disorder, but it’s a combination of the other two. It happens when the soft tissues inside the throat sustain damages and the brain can’t signal your respiratory system properly.

The causes

So, what are the main reasons behind sleep apnea? As already mentioned several times earlier, it happens when something blocks the air passageways. Improper functioning of the respiratory muscles, such as the nasal path, sinus, mouth, and throat leads to improper breathing. In that regard, aging is one of the most significant reasons. Obesity is also one of the main causes. Apart from these two, alcohol consumption, specific sedative medications, and family history contribute to this disorder.

The complications

This respiratory disorder brings numerous complications, including lack of sufficient sleep, tiredness, exhaustion, mental disorders, depression, anxiety, and more. Sleep apnea is the leading cause behind more than sixty percent of strokes. It even leads to type-2 diabetes.