Sleep disorders can be multifactorial and complex. They include snoring, sleep apnoea, narcolepsy, periodic limb movement disorder and insomnia.
Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA) is the most common sleep disorder in the community after insomnia. An apnoea is the cessation of breathing for ten seconds or more in an adult. The common predisposing conditions are obesity, aging and facial shape. If untreated, OSA can cause hypertension and makes several other conditions worse including diabetes, heart failure and abnormal heart rhythms. If severe enough it can cause premature death usually from stroke or heart attack.
Common Symptoms of Sleep Aponea
Snoring is very common in the community .It is usually a social nuisance, but is often also a marker of a more serious problem called Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA).
Choking , gagging and gasping in sleep are symptoms of OSA typically in mild-moderate disease, which paradoxically disappear as the disease gets worse.
Sleepiness and chronic tiredness are usually due to inadequate refreshing sleep, either too little sleep time, or poor quality sleep (as is the case in OSA). It reduces performance in most areas of daily life and may predispose people to traffic and industrial accidents.
Gastro-oesophageal reflux can be a symptom of OSA.