Is there a Cure for Sleep Apnea?

By T. Houser - 2007-08-15 - Article viewed 61 times. Find more articles like this in our Sleep Disorders category.

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People who have sleep apnea stop breathing for periods of 10 to 30 seconds at the time they sleep.

These short lapses in breathing can occur up to 400 times each night. There are 2 kinds of sleep apena: obstructive and a central. The obstructive apnea of sleep is the most common type of sleep disorder. Let us discuss the all possible ways of cure for sleep apnea.

The cure for sleep apnea is aimed at reconstituting the regular night breathing and relieving the symptoms such as the very strong snoring. It will also help the associated medical problems, such as hypertension, and reduce the risk for heart attack.

1. Changes in Habits

Changing daily habits also sometimes becomes a cure for sleep apnea. a. Avoid alcohol, the smoking and sleeping medicines b. If you have excessive weight, you need to reduce it. Even a little loss of weight can improve your symptoms and help you in a cure for sleep apnea. c. Sleep on your side instead of your back. Sleeping on your side can help to keep your throat open. People with the moderate or serious apnea of sleep will have to make these changes as well to cure sleep apnea.

2. Continuous Positive Pressure

To cure sleep apnea, Continuous positive pressure (CPAP) is the common method used for people suffering from sleep apnea. For this cure of sleep apnea, you have a mask above your nose during the sleep. The mask blows the air in your throat on a level of pressure which is exact for you. The increased pressure of air route maintains the throat open while you sleep. The atmospheric pressure is adjusted so that it is just enough to stop the air routes becoming briefly too small during sleep, which ultimately help as a cure for sleep apnea.

This treatment to cure sleep apnea can help to cease the snoring. To stop snoring does not mean that you do not have any more sleep apnea. Usually, a technician comes to your house to bring the equipment of CPAP.

3. Surgery

Some people with sleep apnea may benefit from surgery. The type of surgery depends on the cause of the sleep apnea. Surgery may be done to remove the tonsils and adenoids if they are blocking the airway.

4. Drug Therapy

There is no drug-based cure of sleep apnea for obstructive sleep apnea. Oral administration of the methylxanthine theophylline also helps as a cure for sleep apnea, but can also produce side effects such as palpitations and insomnia. Theophylline is generally ineffective in adults with OSA, but is sometimes used to cure Central Sleep Apnea.

5. Bi-level

One more type of cure for sleep apnea is also known as bi-level which uses an electronic circuit to check the patient's breathing, and gives two different pressures, a higher one during inhalation and a lower pressure during exhalation.

Do you suffer from sleep apnea? Is there a cure for sleep apnea? Thomas D. Houser