Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common sleep disorder in which the muscles of the throat relax during sleep and repeatedly block the airway, causing breathing to stop and restart many times each night. Millions of American adults are affected, and many do not know they have it. Left untreated, sleep apnea strains the heart and raises the risk of high blood pressure, atrial fibrillation, and stroke, as well as drowsy-driving accidents. Causes and Risk Factors: During sleep, the soft tissues at the back of the throat can collapse and narrow or close the airway. Several factors make this more likely:

Excess body weight: Fat deposits around the upper airway are the single most important risk factor in adults.
Anatomy: A thick neck, large tonsils, a large tongue, a small or recessed jaw, or chronic nasal congestion can narrow the airway.
Age and sex: Sleep apnea becomes more common with age and affects men more often, although risk in women rises after menopause.
Alcohol and sedatives: These relax the throat muscles and worsen airway collapse, especially near bedtime.
Smoking and family history: Both increase the likelihood of developing the condition.

Symptoms: Many people learn about their symptoms from a bed partner. Common signs include:

Loud, chronic snoring: Often interrupted by silent pauses followed by gasping or choking sounds.
Excessive daytime sleepiness: Dozing off while reading, watching television, or driving despite a full night in bed.
Morning headaches and dry mouth: Frequent on waking.
Poor concentration, irritability, or low mood: Fragmented sleep affects memory and mental health.
Frequent nighttime urination: Waking several times a night to urinate can be a clue.

Diagnosis: Diagnosis is made with a sleep study, either a home sleep apnea test or an overnight study in a sleep laboratory. These tests count how many times per hour breathing pauses or becomes shallow and measure how far blood oxygen levels drop. Your physician will also review your blood pressure, heart health, and medications, since untreated apnea makes conditions such as diabetes and hypertension harder to control. Treatment: Effective treatment restores restful sleep and lowers cardiovascular risk.

CPAP therapy: Continuous positive airway pressure, delivered through a small mask, holds the airway open and is the most effective treatment for moderate to severe OSA.
Oral appliances: Custom dental devices that move the jaw forward can help mild to moderate cases or people who cannot tolerate CPAP.
Weight loss and lifestyle changes: Losing even 10 percent of body weight, avoiding alcohol before bed, and sleeping on your side can meaningfully reduce apnea severity.
Wake-promoting medications: For people who remain sleepy despite good CPAP use, medications such as solriamfetol, modafinil, or armodafinil may be prescribed to improve daytime alertness.
Surgery or implanted nerve stimulators: Options for selected patients when other measures fail.

Complications: Each apnea episode briefly drops blood oxygen and jolts the body with stress hormones, hundreds of times a night. Over years, this contributes to resistant high blood pressure, heart rhythm problems, heart failure, worsening blood sugar control, memory difficulty, and depression. Daytime sleepiness also roughly doubles the risk of motor vehicle crashes, which is why treatment matters for safety as well as health. The good news: consistent CPAP use improves blood pressure, mood, and alertness within weeks for most people. Untreated sleep apnea rarely improves on its own, and ongoing follow-up helps confirm that therapy is working. If you snore loudly, wake unrefreshed, or fight sleepiness during the day, the internal-medicine team at Zimmer Medical Group can arrange sleep testing and coordinate your treatment — schedule a visit to get started.

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Obstructive Sleep Apnea

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