What are the effects of Obstructive Sleep Apnoea?

Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA) sufferers exhibit symptoms of impairment affecting life at home, school or work. Daytime sleepiness has been linked to accidents while driving, industrial accidents, mood and personality changes.

Broken Sleep
OSA leads to broken sleep for the partner and the person who snores. Sleep science is increasing in importance and studies have shown that the lack of sleep caused by snoring has wide reaching effects such as:-

• daytime sleepiness
• lack of energy
• poor motivation
• higher stress levels due to fatigue
• less effectiveness at work effecting remuneration and career progression

Driving whilst tired
Sleepy driving has statistically been proven to be as dangerous as drunk driving where sleepy or drunk drivers are 2 to 7 times more likely to be involved in motor vehicle accidents than non sleepy ones. In addition up to 57% of OSA sufferers have had habitual sleepy spells when driving.

Few of us would drink a bottle of wine and drive home, yet many people drive their car when they are tired enough to be dangerous.

Increased Blood Pressure
The shortage of oxygen, the adrenalin rush and the awaking process causes a shock to the system of a patient suffering from Obstructive Sleep Apnoea, which puts extra strain on the sufferer's heart. In addition the disturbance caused to sleep means that the body is not properly rested which increases blood pressure

Headaches
Snorers and their partners can suffer from headaches during the night and in the morning due to snoring and OSA.

Increased Risk of Diabetes
Links have been found between snoring & OSA and a greater chance of being diabetic

Relationship Issues
OSA and Snoring affect the partner, the family and the snorer, meaning that everybody concerned is a “Sufferer” as their sleep pattern is disturbed. Many snorers sleep in different rooms to their partners. Snoring causes arguments both at home and in the work place (latter due to fatigue) and is said to be the third most common reason for couples separating.

Your snoring could be a symptom of Obstructive Sleep Apnoea. To investigate your condition further, find out more about Obstructive Sleep Apnoea here