Sleep Apnea

1 in 3 Singaporeans Suffers from moderate to severe Sleep Apnea

Sleep Apnea - Overview

Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder that involves interrupted or paused breathing during sleep. It is characterized by periods of shallow or no breathing, known as apneas, which can last for a few seconds to minutes and occur multiple times throughout the night. These interruptions in breathing can disturb sleep patterns and lead to symptoms such as loud snoring, gasping or choking during sleep, excessive daytime sleepiness, morning headaches, and difficulty concentrating.

There are three main types of sleep apnea:

1. Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)

2. Central Sleep Apnea (CSA)

3. Complex Sleep Apnea Syndrome

Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a disorder caused by the repetitive collapse of the upper airway during sleep. It is the most common sleep-related breathing disorder.

OSA occurs when the muscles supporting the soft tissues in your throat, such as your tongue and soft palate, relax. This causes your airway to narrow or even close, momentarily cutting off your breathing.

Normally, air should flow smoothly from the mouth and nose into the lungs at all times, including during sleep.

Periods when breathing stops completely are called apnea or apneic episodes. In OSA, the normal flow of air is repeatedly stopped throughout the night.

Central Sleep Apnea

Central sleep apnea is a sleep disorder in which you briefly stop breathing during sleep. Moments of apnea can occur repeatedly throughout the night as you sleep. The interruption of your breathing may indicate a problem with your brain’s signaling. Your brain momentarily “forgets” to tell your muscles to breathe.

Central sleep apnea isn’t the same as obstructive sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea is the interruption of breathing due to blocked airways. People who have central sleep apnea don’t have blockages in their airways. The problem is in the connection between the brain and the muscles that control your breath.

Sleep Apnea - Symptoms

Snoring
Excessive daytime sleepiness
Apnoea (pauses in breathing during sleep)
Snorting, gasping noises during sleep
Laboured breathing during sleep, with ‘sucking in’ of the chest
Unusual sleeping positions, such as hyperextending the neck to breathe better, sitting up, or propped up with many pillows
Restlessness and frequent awakenings during sleep
Sweating during sleep
Mouth breathing in the day or during sleep
Cyanosis (blue discolouration of the lips/face
Difficulty waking in the morning
Feeling unrefreshed after an overnight sleep
Morning and/ or afternoon headaches
Irritability or aggressive behaviour during the day
Difficulty remembering and learning

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Sleep Apnea - Health Screenings

There are a few ways we can test for Sleep Apnea:

In Lab Sleep Study
At home sleep test

In lab sleep study

There are two formats for sleep studies: full night and split night.

During a full-night sleep study, your sleep will be monitored for an entire night. If you receive a diagnosis of sleep apnea, you may need to return to the lab at a later date to set up a device to help you breathe.

During a split-night study, the first half of the night is used to monitor your sleep. If sleep apnea is diagnosed, the second part of the night is used to set up the treatment device.

Once you fall asleep, the technician will monitor the following:

your sleep cycle, as determined by your brain waves and eye movements
your heart rate and blood pressure
your breathing, including oxygen levels, breathing lapses, and snoring
your position and any limb movements

At home sleep test

A reduced variant of an in-lab test is an at-home sleep test. The technician is absent. Instead, a take-home portable breathing monitor kit will be recommended by your doctor.

You can go to bed at your usual time the night of the test. To ensure that you accurately connect the monitoring sensors, pay close attention to the kit's instructions.

The majority of in-home sleep apnea monitors are simple to set up. Typically, they consist of the following elements: