Sleep apnea is a severe condition that causes a random stop in breathing. When you have this condition, your breathing will repeatedly stop and start while sleeping. Snoring loudly at night is one of the signs of sleep apnea. Besides, if you wake up feeling tired even after a full night’s sleep, you could have the condition.
There are two forms of sleep apnea, central and obstructive. Obstructive sleep apnea occurs due to the uncontrolled relaxation of the throat muscles. On the other hand, central sleep apnea commonly occurs when proper signals are not sent to the muscles responsible for breathing. As much as sleep apnea might look harmless, it can get very dangerous and cause serious consequences. Here are risks you can face by not addressing sleep apnea.
DAYTIME FATIGUE
When you have sleep apnea, you will find it challenging to stay energetic throughout the day. This can be a huge setback, especially if you are an active athlete. The repeated awakenings caused by sleep apnea are likely to cause daytime fatigue, drowsiness, and irritability. As a result, you will find it difficult to concentrate during the day. In fact, research shows that people with sleep apnea are more likely to cause workplace and motor vehicle accidents. They are also easily irritated and feel quick-tempered. School-going students with this condition might also perform poorly due to a lack of concentration.
COMPLICATIONS WITH MEDICATIONS
Obstructive sleep apnea can cause complications with various medications. In most cases, this condition could affect the impact of general anesthesia. Furthermore, people with this condition could easily develop complications after a major surgery due to breathing problems. The flow of blood in the body could be affected by your breathing rate, meaning surgical wounds could take time to heal due to unstable blood supply. Contact our offices for more information on the risks sleep apnea poses.