Parents tend to worry about their newborns when they stop breathing and set up all sorts of safety monitoring. Every now and then a newborn will stop breathing for a few seconds. It is quite often occurring to the newborns and infants. Subsequent to this brief pause in breathing they take a deep breath to the frantic joy and sweet relief of the nearby parent. Delayed or irregular breathing as a newborn is general but if it continues into later life, it can become a complicated medical nightmare.

Sleep apnea is the name for such a condition when a person stops breathing while sleeping. It is more common in adults than children and small babies but the presentation is the same, interruption of a normal breathing pattern. Delayed breathing, long pauses and skipping breaths before starting to breathe again will lead to several other health problems. Read the rest of this entry

You could be just one among the millions of people all across the globe who are suffering from a sleep disorder. Even more disturbing is the fact that majority of the persons suffering from sleep disorders are undiagnosed.

How can you be so sure that if you have a sleep disorder?

Here are some of the most commonly occurring health conditions and symptoms that you may be experiencing significant as a typical sleep problem that requires urgent professional evaluation.

1.You have trouble going to sleep at night

While this is a common complaint among the normal population, if the problem persists it may signal the presence of a sleep disorder.                        Read the rest of this entry

Kids with sleep apnea briefly stop breathing several times nightly; each subtle mini-awakening keeps them from getting essential deep sleep. They often have learning and behavior problems, and they’re at increased risk for higher blood pressure.

A recent study of healthy elementary school kids found a quarter had mild sleep apnea (often caused by chronic sinus infections); one (01) percent suffered severely. Obesity, the usual trigger in adults, sometimes plays a role, but the likeliest cause is oversize tonsils or adenoids.

School age kids with sleep apnea usually breathe noisily or snore. Your sleeping child’s chest may also move vigorously or his head tip back in a groggy attempt to get more air.

The only way to confirm sleep apnea is to visit a sleep lab. It’s treated by removing tonsils and adenoids or by helping your child shed excess pounds. Sinus medication may help, as might sleeping with the head propped up.

1. Sleep apnea affects up to 18 million Americans
2. The condition was first described in 1965
3. “Apnea” comes from a Greek word meaning “want of breath.”
4. People with sleep apnea can stop breathing as many as 30 times or more each night.
5. Often a spouse or other family member is the first to notice signs of sleep apnea in someone with the condition.
6. Officials estimate 10 million Americans have the condition but have not been diagnosed. Read the rest of this entry

Victoria Wofford, 54, admitted stealing a stunning $17 million from American Express through fraudulent charges on  defunct business travel accounts.

And she  swiped another $8 million from a defense contractor by systematically over billing them for travel booked through her company.

“I’m not sure what I was thinking at the time, it may have had something to do with the undiagnosed sleep apnea that I apparently suffered from for many, many years,” Wofford told Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Michael Obus before he sent her to prison.

It was not clear if the self-described “workaholic” has since been diagnosed or is being treated for the disorder that causes a person to periodically stop breathing while they sleep and can leave them drowsy and confused during waking hours. Read the rest of this entry

Singapore has been celebrating World Sleep Day, which is March 18, by deploying self-assessment kiosks throughout hospitals to help its citizens find out if they are at risk for obstructive sleep apnea, or OSA.

The first of such self assessment kiosk was installed on March 1.

obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)  sufferers stop breathing repeatedly during sleep, which happens when the upper airway is blocked by a large tongue or extra tissue in the throat.

Symptoms include loud snoring, choking during sleep, poor memory, feeling irritable and excessive daytime sleepiness.

An estimated 15 percent of the country’s population suffer from obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), but the number of patients is expected to rise with increased awareness of this condition.

Source:TVOnline.Com

Sleep Apnea elevates the overall risk of heart attack, diabetes and stroke and several researches have established such links with clinical studies. Here are few extremely helpful tips as what you should do when a loved one stops breathing;

• Check the pulse for a heartbeat.
• Try artificial ventilation (mouth to mouth restoration of air).
• If you are overweight, weight reduction may improve your snoring or sleep apnea and enlarge the airway size.
• Elevating the head of your bed and avoiding sleeping on your back may be helpful. A common way to train you to not sleep on the back is to place a tennis ball in a sock pinned to the back of a sleep shirt or placed in a pocket sewn into the shirt.
• Improve the amount and regularity of sleep. One should go to sleep and wake up at approximately the same time every day. Try to get at least seven to eight hours of sleep a night. Snoring and sleep apnea is often worse if you are overtired. Read the rest of this entry

You could be just one among the millions of people all across the globe who are suffering from a sleep disorder. Even more disturbing is the fact that majority of the persons suffering from sleep disorders are undiagnosed.

How can you be so sure that if you have a sleep disorder?

Here are some of the most commonly occurring health conditions and symptoms that you may be experiencing significant  as a typical sleep problem that requires urgent professional evaluation.

1.You have trouble going to sleep at night

While this is a common complaint among the normal population, if the problem persists it may signal the presence of a sleep disorder. Read the rest of this entry

Summer thunderstorms are great theater-sky-spanning fireworks followed by crackling, crashing booms. But thunderstorms are also linked to some negative effects on health, from breathing disturbances to heart problems.

Summer thunderstorms are great theater—sky-spanning fireworks followed by crackling, crashing booms. But thunderstorms are also linked to some negative effects on health, from breathing disturbances to heart problems, reports the August 2010 issue of the Harvard Health Letter. Read the rest of this entry

Sleep apnea, a serious and potentially life-threatening disorder if left untreated, affects approximately 18 million Americans. During sleep apnea episodes, a person stops breathing for at least 10 seconds. Depending on the severity of the disorder, a person can have between 10 and 60 episodes a night. Sleep apnea treatment often involves a team of healthcare providers, including dentists, general physicians, surgeons and sleep specialists.

If you think you suffer from sleep apnea, the Pennsylvania Dental Association (PDA) recommends consulting with your dentist. Early detection is key because sleep apnea has been linked with irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes.

There are three types of sleep apnea, including obstructive apnea (OSA), central apnea and a combination of the two. The most common type of sleep apnea, OSA, is caused when the muscles in the walls of your throat relax too much, causing the airway to collapse. Central sleep apnea is caused when the brain fails to signal the muscles to breathe. Read the rest of this entry