Thanks Chloe, very informative.

Would you know if weight is a factor in sleep apnea?
My wife tells me that since I lost weight (some 30+ lbs), both my snoring and
my laboured breathing/apnea have noticibly improved. (lots of other changes
took place during that time, so it might be something else.)

"chloe.aldam" wrote:
>
> Sleep apnea:
>
> >Causes, incidence, and risk factors
> During sleep, relaxation of the muscles at the base of the throat
> cause obstruction of the airway, with extremely loud snoring and
> labored breathing. When complete blockage of the airway occurs,
> breathing stops. The obstruction to breathing prevents a person from
> reaching deeper stages of sleep, causing the symptoms of daytime
> drowsiness. Contributing factors may include use of alcohol or
> sedatives before sleep, anatomically narrowed airways, and massively
> enlarged tonsils and adenoids. Hypertension or pulmonary hypertension
> with enlarged right ventricle may be present.
>
> The classical presentation of obstructive sleep apnea is the
> appearance of snoring shortly after going to sleep. The snoring
> proceeds at a regular pace for a period of time, often becoming
> louder, but is then interrupted by a long silent period during which
> no breathing is taking place (apnea). The apnea is then interrupted by
> a loud snort and gasp and the snoring returns to its regular pace.
> This behavior may recur repetitively and frequently throughout the
> night. During the apneic periods the oxygen level in the blood falls
> dramatically. Persistent low levels of oxygen (hypoxia) causes the
> daytime symptoms. If the condition is severe enough, pulmonary
> hypertension develops and the patient may develop right sided heart
> failure (corpulmonale) or myocarditis.
> >>
>
> My dad has this condition.  He found out from a neighbour who was
> probably within a year of dying from a heart attack at night (the same
> as his dad and his grandad and great-grandad - all died in their early
> 40's. Both my dad and this neighbour are getting towards their 60's
> now).
> Both of them use an air supply machine, with either a mask or nose
> plugs to supply air at a slightly higher pressure.
> Some doctors may recommend surgery to shorten the throat muscles - but
> they will lengthen with time and it will have to be done again (not an
> ideal situation).  If surgery is done, then the machine cannot be
> used.
> The neighbour's snoring had caused his wife to sleep in another room
> for 2 years - and was thinking about leaving him, but this machine
> saved them!  His concentration improved, his behaviour (!) improved
> and he felt much healthier (and was nicer to his wife!  So his wife
> was nicer back!!).
>
> Neither had any problems getting a machine - tests were done overnight
> (to check breathing/snoring patterns), then sent away with their
> machine, and then 4 check-ups in the first year, then one annual
> check-up since then (also to service the machine).
>
> Both wear a necklace, as it's essential that in case of an accident,
> the anaesthetist knows about it.
>
> Hope this helps
>
> Chloe Aldam
> UK
>
> CG for Chris who's Mum is PD+ (mid60's, dx 5 PD, dx 2 PD+)

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