Sleep apnea is a disorder where the breathing of an individual repeatedly starts and stops. Over 2-9% of adults in the USA suffer from the condition. The common, minor signs which indicate that you may be developing sleep apnea are excessively loud snoring and feeling tired after waking up despite having slept seemingly properly throughout the night.

Types of sleep apnea

• Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)
  Obstructive sleep apnea is the most commonly seen type of sleep apnea and is seen to have affected 4% of the men and 2% of the women in the USA. However, over 10% of people who develop it do not get themselves treated, leaving the majority of them undiagnosed. It is a major risk factor for one’s overall health. Obstructive sleep apnea is caused because of the partial or complete obstruction of the windpipe during sleep. This occurs when the throat muscles relax and the airways get disrupted. Because of this, normal airflow is blocked. The blockage results in the disruption in sleep and is usually accompanied with loud gasps, choking, or snorts as the individual tries to take a deep breath that is strong enough to move past the blockage. After the deep breath is taken, the brain comes back to the state of normalcy, and goes back to sleep. The cycle continues to repeat. This may occur a few times in a night or occur multiple times, depending on how severe the problem is.

• Mixed Sleep Apnea (MSA) / Complex Sleep Apnea
  Mixed sleep apnea or complex sleep apnea is a condition where the patient suffers from a blend of both obstructive and central sleep apnea symptoms. This phenomenon was seen to occur in patients who were suffering from obstructive sleep apnea, and were being treated by CPAP machines. It was found that during treatment, they started to show signs of central sleep apnea in addition to obstructive sleep apnea symptoms. MSA is also known as treatment-emergent sleep apnea. This is so because after successful treatment of one sleep apnea (usually OSA), patients show signs of another sleep apnea (CSA). In this condition, despite having their airways cleared of any blockages, the patients continue to experience difficulty in breathing during sleep.

• Central Sleep Apnea (CSA)
  Central sleep apnea is another one of the types of sleep apnea. This type occurs when the individual’s brain is unable to send direct signals to muscles and tissues which are responsible for breathing. It occurs mainly because of the failed communication between the brain and muscles. CSA is, however, less common than OSA, as research indicates that there are less than 20% of sleep apnea patients who suffer from CSA. The condition is often caused by health issues with regard to the brainstem (lower region of the back of the brain). Damage or problems in this region usually results in variation in symptoms and different kinds of CSA in patients.