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Sleep apnea is estimated to affect nearly 30 million people in the United States, according to research.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e597629efd4ada1-47d7-4b71-bc34-d29a00a80266 But doctors say the number is likely much higher because the condition is widely thought to be underdiagnosed, notes the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e597629307e687e-c94a-4b34-9630-2ea3448f7659 This common sleep disorder is caused by a relaxation of the upper airway muscles, mostly the tongue, leading to repetitive stoppages of breathing during the night, which interrupts the sleep cycle and typically prevents a person from getting a good night’s sleep. The condition often goes undiagnosed because many of the symptoms that would clue you in that there’s a problem — such as snoring, breathing pauses, and gasping for air — occur during sleep. Those breathing pauses wake you up temporarily, but usually not enough for you to pull yourself out of sleep completely or remember being awake. That means a lot of individuals with sleep apnea may not have any idea the next day that they experienced breathing difficulties during the night. “Some estimates say sleep apnea probably affects one-quarter of middle-aged men,” says Ronald Chervin, MD , professor of sleep medicine and neurology and division chief of the Sleep Disorders Centers at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Here are the symptoms you and your bed partner should be on the lookout for in each other during the night, as well as symptoms people with sleep apnea may experience during the day.
Common Sleep Apnea Symptoms That Happen During Sleep and Warning Signs You May Notice During the Day What to Look For If your partner or a family member tells you that you exhibit these symptoms during sleep, you may want to make an appointment with your doctor to be evaluated for sleep apnea. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, these symptoms are common in all three types of sleep apnea : obstructive sleep apnea (the most common), central sleep apnea, and complex sleep apnea.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976291ba65331-c119-4fb2-89ca-8c200c3d2723 Habitual snoring that may be loud enough to be heard outside the room soon after you fall asleep (though snoring doesn’t necessarily always mean someone has sleep apnea, and not everyone who has sleep apnea snores) Breathing that stops for 10 seconds or more, followed by snorting and gasping for air; in some cases this pattern can repeat 30 times or more in an hour Per Mayo Clinic, other warning signs of sleep apnea you may see include:e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976290c69b313-7527-4f99-add2-549340f614ea Having a dry mouth in the morning when you wake up Morning headache Extreme sleepiness and fatigue during the day Irritability Waking up feeling tired despite sleeping seven or more hours — the minimum number of hours of sleep recommended for adults by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976299f36e81d-bd0d-4fd9-b020-31aaf3f17a2d Problems with memory, attention, and concentration, per MedlinePluse60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e597629687f8623-06e2-47a9-803d-f2e4ef9e1ea9 Decreased libido or sexual dysfunction Depression Hyperactivity (particularly common in children with sleep apnea) According to MedlinePlus, some symptoms that are more typical of central sleep apnea (which you may experience in addition to other symptoms) include:e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976292a4507ce-ef2d-485f-896f-f8d426e87b36 Shortness of breath Problems swallowing Weakness or numbness in your body Changes in your voice
Ignoring Sleep Apnea Symptoms May Put More Than Your Own Health At Risk Why You Should Not Ignore Symptoms Sleep apnea symptoms can be similar to symptoms of lots of other medical conditions, or may be ignored and chalked up to things like work stress, having a busy schedule, or having a lot going on with the family. But doctors urge people not to overlook or disregard symptoms. If it’s not sleep apnea, your doctor may be able to help correctly diagnose another medical problem if there is one — or help you find ways to deal with stressors in your life that cause you to feel the way you do. And if it is sleep apnea, your doctor can help you diagnose the problem and get treatment before the condition starts causing complications — and before the sleepiness and fatigue associated with sleep apnea lead to an accident that could harm you or others. “When sleep apnea is untreated, an individual has a 2.5 times increased risk of having a motor vehicle accident,” says James Rowley, MD , a pulmonologist and sleep medicine specialist at Detroit Medical Center and a member of the AASM’s board of directors. “It’s the equivalent of driving drunk.” (That risk level is based on data published in the journal Sleep .)e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e597629f5aaefc5-033f-4e8e-8050-16d85b2793f8 Truck drivers are known to be at a particularly high risk for sleep apnea . In part that’s because certain factors that characterize a high number of truck drivers, such as being middle-aged, male, and obese, are also risk factors for sleep apnea, according to research.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976291d2d06ef-93f9-477c-ac7e-7eae2bff6df3 A separate review in the journal Sleep specifically looked at truck drivers’ accident risk. Those with sleep apnea who didn’t follow their recommended treatments were 5 times more likely to crash than drivers without sleep apnea.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e597629668dda23-d3b4-4a9a-9ac7-53d2b743ed83 It’s a serious problem, many sleep medicine experts, public health officials, and others have said, because commercial automobile accidents tend more often to be fatal or serious than noncommercial automobile accidents, according to another study .e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e59762919d5923d-654b-4992-8f9d-7b747f426e29 “Truck drivers with untreated obstructive sleep apnea are at dramatically greater risk of serious, preventable truck crashes, consistent with the greatly increased risk of motor vehicle crashes among automobile drivers with untreated obstructive sleep apnea,” said one of the study’s coauthors, Charles A. Czeisler, PhD, MD , the director of the Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston, in a press release about the study.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976294011748d-a0e4-40a9-98ab-953628294041 Despite these risks, the current guidelines for screening truck drivers and other commercial vehicle operators are lax. In a letter to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the AASM urged the two agencies to improve current guidelines and sleep apnea screening procedures for drivers and other personnel who hold positions that can affect public safety in highway and rail transportation. The Federal Aviation Administration has in recent years implemented requirements to screen airline pilots for sleep apnea.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e59762932d2ac1d-daa2-4a59-84bd-13000884d029 The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) does not recommend screening for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in asymptomatic adults, citing insufficient evidence to do so — although the organization notes that it is a fully independent group and its recommendations do not reflect any type of official U.S. government guidelines. For its part, the AASM recommends screening all patients who have a high risk for OSA even if they don’t report any sleep-related symptoms. It advises primary care providers to identify patients who have a high risk for OSA (such as people who have type 2 diabetes, obesity, or hypertension ) and screen them for OSA, not only to improve the quality of life and health outcomes for those individuals, but also to benefit the public.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976290b1921c8-3800-4e81-85f3-4661c339ce24 AASM noted that diagnosing and treating every patient in the United States who has OSA could save an estimated $100 billion a year.
Should You Get Screened for Sleep Apnea? When to Get Screened Whether or not you have a job that can affect public safety, doctors say there are clear benefits to seeing your doctor to rule out sleep apnea if you suspect you may have symptoms. And even if you aren’t sure if you have any symptoms, you may want to speak to your doctor about being screened for sleep apnea if one or more of these categories apply to you. Obesity People who are overweight are at greater risk of having OSA. “When you gain weight, the lateral fat pads in the throat leave less room to breathe,” Dr. Chervin says. During sleep, the relaxation of the muscles and soft tissue in the throat make the throat even narrower, making it more difficult to get enough air. Family History of Sleep Apnea Researchers have found evidence that having a family history of sleep apnea can increase your risk for the condition. Studies have shown that sleep apnea may be hereditary, and that traits that affect sleep apnea such as face and skull shape or how the brain controls breathing during sleep, as well as genes that may be associated with obesity and inflammation, may run in families. Medical Condition or Illness That Raises Your Risk of Developing Sleep Apnea Conditions such as asthma, congestive heart failure , high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and stroke all increase your risk of sleep apnea. Unhealthy Habits Harmful habits like smoking and eating an unhealthy diet can put you at greater risk for sleep apnea. Smoking can not only cause inflammation in your airways, which can affect your breathing, but it can also have a negative effect on how your brain communicates with your body during sleep and how well it controls your breathing. An unhealthy diet can lead to obesity, which is a leading risk for OSA. Alcohol Consumption Alcohol can increase relaxation of the muscles in the mouth and throat, causing the upper airway to become narrow or close. It can also affect how the brain controls sleep or the muscles involved in breathing during sleep. Use of Medications Like Opioids Medications like benzodiazepines and opioids can affect how well the brain regulates breathing and increase the risk of sleep apnea. Research has shown that opioids may reduce airway muscle activation and increase risk for OSA.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e597629216122b6-c15b-4e9f-986a-baa0c52b37cf In addition to talking to your doctor, one simple screening tool, the STOP-Bang Questionnaire , is an eight-question checklist that can help you evaluate your risk for sleep apnea.
Common Sleep Apnea Symptoms That Happen During Sleep and Warning Signs You May Notice During the Day What to Look For If your partner or a family member tells you that you exhibit these symptoms during sleep, you may want to make an appointment with your doctor to be evaluated for sleep apnea. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, these symptoms are common in all three types of sleep apnea : obstructive sleep apnea (the most common), central sleep apnea, and complex sleep apnea.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976291ba65331-c119-4fb2-89ca-8c200c3d2723 Habitual snoring that may be loud enough to be heard outside the room soon after you fall asleep (though snoring doesn’t necessarily always mean someone has sleep apnea, and not everyone who has sleep apnea snores) Breathing that stops for 10 seconds or more, followed by snorting and gasping for air; in some cases this pattern can repeat 30 times or more in an hour Per Mayo Clinic, other warning signs of sleep apnea you may see include:e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976290c69b313-7527-4f99-add2-549340f614ea Having a dry mouth in the morning when you wake up Morning headache Extreme sleepiness and fatigue during the day Irritability Waking up feeling tired despite sleeping seven or more hours — the minimum number of hours of sleep recommended for adults by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976299f36e81d-bd0d-4fd9-b020-31aaf3f17a2d Problems with memory, attention, and concentration, per MedlinePluse60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e597629687f8623-06e2-47a9-803d-f2e4ef9e1ea9 Decreased libido or sexual dysfunction Depression Hyperactivity (particularly common in children with sleep apnea) According to MedlinePlus, some symptoms that are more typical of central sleep apnea (which you may experience in addition to other symptoms) include:e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976292a4507ce-ef2d-485f-896f-f8d426e87b36 Shortness of breath Problems swallowing Weakness or numbness in your body Changes in your voice
Ignoring Sleep Apnea Symptoms May Put More Than Your Own Health At Risk Why You Should Not Ignore Symptoms Sleep apnea symptoms can be similar to symptoms of lots of other medical conditions, or may be ignored and chalked up to things like work stress, having a busy schedule, or having a lot going on with the family. But doctors urge people not to overlook or disregard symptoms. If it’s not sleep apnea, your doctor may be able to help correctly diagnose another medical problem if there is one — or help you find ways to deal with stressors in your life that cause you to feel the way you do. And if it is sleep apnea, your doctor can help you diagnose the problem and get treatment before the condition starts causing complications — and before the sleepiness and fatigue associated with sleep apnea lead to an accident that could harm you or others. “When sleep apnea is untreated, an individual has a 2.5 times increased risk of having a motor vehicle accident,” says James Rowley, MD , a pulmonologist and sleep medicine specialist at Detroit Medical Center and a member of the AASM’s board of directors. “It’s the equivalent of driving drunk.” (That risk level is based on data published in the journal Sleep .)e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e597629f5aaefc5-033f-4e8e-8050-16d85b2793f8 Truck drivers are known to be at a particularly high risk for sleep apnea . In part that’s because certain factors that characterize a high number of truck drivers, such as being middle-aged, male, and obese, are also risk factors for sleep apnea, according to research.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976291d2d06ef-93f9-477c-ac7e-7eae2bff6df3 A separate review in the journal Sleep specifically looked at truck drivers’ accident risk. Those with sleep apnea who didn’t follow their recommended treatments were 5 times more likely to crash than drivers without sleep apnea.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e597629668dda23-d3b4-4a9a-9ac7-53d2b743ed83 It’s a serious problem, many sleep medicine experts, public health officials, and others have said, because commercial automobile accidents tend more often to be fatal or serious than noncommercial automobile accidents, according to another study .e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e59762919d5923d-654b-4992-8f9d-7b747f426e29 “Truck drivers with untreated obstructive sleep apnea are at dramatically greater risk of serious, preventable truck crashes, consistent with the greatly increased risk of motor vehicle crashes among automobile drivers with untreated obstructive sleep apnea,” said one of the study’s coauthors, Charles A. Czeisler, PhD, MD , the director of the Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston, in a press release about the study.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976294011748d-a0e4-40a9-98ab-953628294041 Despite these risks, the current guidelines for screening truck drivers and other commercial vehicle operators are lax. In a letter to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the AASM urged the two agencies to improve current guidelines and sleep apnea screening procedures for drivers and other personnel who hold positions that can affect public safety in highway and rail transportation. The Federal Aviation Administration has in recent years implemented requirements to screen airline pilots for sleep apnea.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e59762932d2ac1d-daa2-4a59-84bd-13000884d029 The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) does not recommend screening for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in asymptomatic adults, citing insufficient evidence to do so — although the organization notes that it is a fully independent group and its recommendations do not reflect any type of official U.S. government guidelines. For its part, the AASM recommends screening all patients who have a high risk for OSA even if they don’t report any sleep-related symptoms. It advises primary care providers to identify patients who have a high risk for OSA (such as people who have type 2 diabetes, obesity, or hypertension ) and screen them for OSA, not only to improve the quality of life and health outcomes for those individuals, but also to benefit the public.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e5976290b1921c8-3800-4e81-85f3-4661c339ce24 AASM noted that diagnosing and treating every patient in the United States who has OSA could save an estimated $100 billion a year.
Should You Get Screened for Sleep Apnea? When to Get Screened Whether or not you have a job that can affect public safety, doctors say there are clear benefits to seeing your doctor to rule out sleep apnea if you suspect you may have symptoms. And even if you aren’t sure if you have any symptoms, you may want to speak to your doctor about being screened for sleep apnea if one or more of these categories apply to you. Obesity People who are overweight are at greater risk of having OSA. “When you gain weight, the lateral fat pads in the throat leave less room to breathe,” Dr. Chervin says. During sleep, the relaxation of the muscles and soft tissue in the throat make the throat even narrower, making it more difficult to get enough air. Family History of Sleep Apnea Researchers have found evidence that having a family history of sleep apnea can increase your risk for the condition. Studies have shown that sleep apnea may be hereditary, and that traits that affect sleep apnea such as face and skull shape or how the brain controls breathing during sleep, as well as genes that may be associated with obesity and inflammation, may run in families. Medical Condition or Illness That Raises Your Risk of Developing Sleep Apnea Conditions such as asthma, congestive heart failure , high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and stroke all increase your risk of sleep apnea. Unhealthy Habits Harmful habits like smoking and eating an unhealthy diet can put you at greater risk for sleep apnea. Smoking can not only cause inflammation in your airways, which can affect your breathing, but it can also have a negative effect on how your brain communicates with your body during sleep and how well it controls your breathing. An unhealthy diet can lead to obesity, which is a leading risk for OSA. Alcohol Consumption Alcohol can increase relaxation of the muscles in the mouth and throat, causing the upper airway to become narrow or close. It can also affect how the brain controls sleep or the muscles involved in breathing during sleep. Use of Medications Like Opioids Medications like benzodiazepines and opioids can affect how well the brain regulates breathing and increase the risk of sleep apnea. Research has shown that opioids may reduce airway muscle activation and increase risk for OSA.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e597629216122b6-c15b-4e9f-986a-baa0c52b37cf In addition to talking to your doctor, one simple screening tool, the STOP-Bang Questionnaire , is an eight-question checklist that can help you evaluate your risk for sleep apnea.
