Are you Sleeping with your enemy?  

Obstructive Sleep Apnea or OSA is a loud snoring which is interrupted by respiratory arrest (apnea) of more than 10 seconds in duration is obstructive sleep apnea. This is usually accompanied by a reduction in blood oxygen saturation followed by a microawakening to breath. In severe cases, hundreds of breathing pauses can occur every night. In obstructive panea, the throat closes during inhalation due to excessive relaxation of the pharynx muscles and the floor of the mouth, accompanied by increase tissue pressure from outside. This prevents air from entering the lungs, and the patient is threatened with suffocation.

Somebody asked if OSA is dangerous and what are the effects? OSA has been associated with increase mortality ratio of 3.33. Sleep apnea has been associated with an upto 23-fold increased risk of heart atttack. A number of studies have now documented sleep apnea in over two-thirds of male stroke victims. In the last JNC-7 Guidelines of hypertension, OSA was the most common etiology for secondary hypertension demonstrated sleep apnea. In many Patients, treating sleep apnea can bring blood pressure readings under control: often with less medication.

In some cases, OSA may be fatal. Inmany instances, the idea that someone died peacefully during sleep clearly must have amounted to wishful thinking, since instead, the deceased was probably fighting violently for breath up to the very end. A fellow of Philippine College of physician discussed this topic in details. If you are interested on this topic, you might as well browse this site: www.pcp.onlinemindanao.com or directly click on this link: http://www.pcp.onlinemind...