[Dr. Wu Dingyu] Sleep Disorders and Sleep Apnea Syndrome
97.11.26 (Wed)
Because humans are unconscious during sleep, it was not easy to study this topic in the past. However, thanks to the advancement of scientific instruments and information technology, we finally have the appropriate instruments – multi-channel sleep analyzers – which enable us to better understand the various physiological changes that occur during sleep. This allows scientists and doctors to gain a deeper understanding of this often-overlooked third of life.
There are many types of sleep disorders. According to the current international classification of sleep disorders, they can be divided into:Insomnia、Sleep-related breathing disorders、narcolepsy、circadian rhythm sleep disorder、narcolepsy、Sleep-related movement disorders、Other sleep disorders…etc. Due to space limitations, a comprehensive overview cannot be provided here. The following is a brief introduction to obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, which has a high prevalence among sleep-disordered breathing and is clinically common.
So-calledObstructive sleep apneaObstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), as the name suggests, is a sleep apnea caused by airway obstruction during sleep. What are the symptoms of this condition? Common symptoms include loud and irregular snoring, abnormal nasal sounds, interrupted breathing during sleep, daytime sleepiness and lack of energy, obesity, fatigue, poor concentration, memory loss, morning headaches, etc. Men may experience erectile dysfunction, and children may experience bedwetting. If your partner exhibits these symptoms, it is time to seek medical help. Because this condition affects daytime concentration, many people with this condition are involved in accidents of varying degrees while driving or engaged in dangerous work. According to statistics, the accident rate for people with this condition is about four times higher than that of the general population.
Current medical research has confirmed that patients with this type of sleep apnea...They have a higher chance of developing high blood pressure, arrhythmia, and other heart and lung diseases.In addition, these types of patientsThe risk of stroke is three to eight times higher than that of the general population.Fortunately, there have been breakthroughs in the diagnosis and treatment of obstructive sleep apnea.Multiple sleep physiological testsPolysomnography (PSG) can make accurate diagnoses of such patients and assess their severity.
Sleep apnea is an important category among many sleep disorders. It requires a complete and meticulous clinical examination by a professional physician, including a medical history inquiry, sleep examination, and evaluation by a sleep medicine team before correct and effective interventional treatment can be given. This can effectively improve the patient's sleep quality and quality of life, and more importantly, identify the cause of the disease and reduce the risk of developing other major cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases in the future.
Dr. Ding-Yu Wu, Department of Neurology, Shuang Ho Hospital