Thanks for the D2D. In sleep apnea, there is reduced oxygen in the blood from obstruction or collapse of the nose-oral-pharyngeal- laryngeal airway in sleep. This reduced oxygenation leads to highly significant long term side effects, and can be thought of as a silent killer really. No one pays much attention to it till it is late or too late, as it seems like just harmless snoring.
Adults can have daytime sleepiness, irritability, depression, impaired concentration/ memory, fatigue and morning headaches. At night, there is choking or stopping of breathing episodes, grinding and wearing down of or cracked teeth, increased urination and poor libido.
Regular snorers are 5 times more likely to have hypertension, cholesterolaemia , diabetes, heart attack and stroke than occasional snorers. For all these reasons, many society guidelines now recommend a sleep study early for patients with hypertension and stroke.
Even as you look out for your uncle, it is important to spread to word to friends and family that snoring in children can be just as harmful. For children, instead of snoring, many have open mouth breathing as their nose passages are tiny. The child is restless, tossing and turning in sleep with mouth open and often bed wetting. The child often wakes up irritable, hyperactive, may be misdiagnosed as attention deficit.
Unlike adults, many kids do not have sleepiness. These kids may not be obese, and may even fail to thrive. Long term complications similarly include heart, hypertension and memory problems. There can be long narrow facies, dental overbite and reduced lower jaw growth – these all predispose them to become adult snorers.
Another group in which snoring is often underestimated is women. Of women with preeclampsia blood pressure problems in pregnancy, 50% have sleep – it is important to seek treatment for snoring before pregnancy as medications and surgery may present problems for the fetus.
