Types and Treatment of Sleep Apnea in Rock Hill, SC

Sleep is essential for improving brain and body function. It is required that people get at least 7 hours of sleep to ensure they optimize the rest of their body’s needs. However, individuals with sleep disorders don’t often get enough rest required for healthy functioning.

Sleep apnea can cause people to feel tired, drowsy, and unhealthy, which affects how they go about their daily activities and can cause severe medical complications along the way. Our sleep apnea doctors will, in this guide, examine the types and treatment of sleep apnea in Rock Hill, SC, to enable you to address this issue effectively.

What is Sleep Apnea?

Apnea is derived from the Greek word meaning “without breath”, so sleep apnea can simply be described as being breathless during sleep. Sleep apnea is a medical condition that causes you to stop breathing while asleep. This ultimately prevents your body from getting oxygen. The resulting lack of oxygen propels a survival mode in your brain, which causes a reflex that wakes you up just enough to resume breathing.

While the reflex ensures you stay alive, it affects your sleep cycle, which prevents you from getting quality rest. This eventually affects other areas of your life, including putting stress on your heart, which can have severe consequences. 

Types of Sleep Apnea

There are three types of sleep apnea disorder. They include obstructive sleep apnea, central sleep apnea, and complex sleep apnea. Here’s a detailed explanation of each of them:

Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)

OSA is the most common type of sleep apnea that affects many individuals. It occurs when your airway is continually blocked either completely or partially while you sleep. This happens when the muscles in your face and neck relax while you sleep, causing the soft tissue at the back of your throat to collapse. 

Individuals may begin to breathe with loud gasps, which might cause their bodies to jerk. Obstructive sleep apnea can reduce the flow of oxygen to vital organs in your body, cause abnormal heart rhythms, and generally affect your sleep.

Central Sleep Apnea

Individuals experiencing central sleep apnea don’t usually get their airways blocked, as seen in obstructive sleep apnea. Instead, there are problems in your respiratory control center, which hinders the brain from telling your muscles to breathe. 

Central sleep apnea is related to the dysfunction of your central nervous system. It occasionally affects people with stroke, lung, heart, and kidney diseases, as well as people with neuromuscular disease, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Complex Sleep Apnea Syndrome

Complex sleep apnea syndrome is a combination of obstructive and central sleep apnea. It often emerges after a patient has been treated for obstructive apnea but later experiences central sleep apnea. 

Causes of Sleep Apnea

Depending on the type you’re experiencing, the causes of sleep apnea could be:

• Obstructive Apnea: The causes of obstructive sleep apnea include obesity, enlarged tonsils, nasal congestion, or a neck circumference bigger than 16 inches.
• Central Sleep Apnea: The causes of central sleep apnea are related to health conditions, such as lung or heart diseases, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and Parkinson’s disease. Aging and hormone disorders are other factors that cause central sleep apnea.

Symptoms of Sleep Apnea

There are many symptoms of sleep apnea, but some can be spotted more easily than others. However, the most common symptoms include: 

• Drowsiness, especially during the day
• Snoring
• Feeling fatigued or exhausted after waking up
• Waking up repeatedly during the night
• Pauses in breathing while asleep and are noticeable by others
• Waking up and feeling shortages of breath, similar to choking
• Night sweat and feeling restless 
• Insomnia
• Headaches after waking up
• Sexual dysfunction

Treating Sleep Apnea in Rock Hill, SC

There are various ways to reduce or get rid of the sleep apnea symptoms. Our doctors will recommend the right sleep apnea treatment in Rock Hill, SC, suitable to the conditions you’re experiencing. Sleep apnea treatment could include:

• Sleep Apnea Machines: They are sleep apnea devices worn over the face, like a mask, to send air into your airways. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is one of the most used sleep apnea devices for blowing air into the airway.
• Oral Appliance: Appliances, such as a sleep apnea mouth guard or tongue retaining device can be worn to keep your throat open. They are easier to use compared to sleep apnea machines.
• Medications: Our sleep apnea doctors in Rock Hill, SC, may prescribe sleep medications or drugs to aid breathing, especially for individuals with central sleep apnea.

At Metrolina Medical Associates, we offer a variety of sleep apnea treatments in Rock Hill, SC, specific to treating your conditions. Our doctors possess the experience to ensure you have a restful sleep while also helping you treat other conditions responsible for OSA, such as obesity, diabetes, and hypertension. Schedule an appointment with us today for a comprehensive sleep apnea treatment, or contact us to speak with our doctors for more information.