Obstructive sleep apnea is a common and serious sleep disorder that causes you to stop breathing during sleep. The airway repeatedly becomes blocked, limiting the amount of air that reaches your lungs. When this happens, you may snore loudly or making choking noises as you try to breathe. Your brain and body becomes oxygen deprived and you may wake up. This may happen a few times a night, or in more severe cases, several hundred times a night.

In many cases, an apnea, or temporary pause in breathing, is caused by the tissue in the back of the throat collapsing. The muscles of the upper airway relax when you fall asleep. If you sleep on your back, gravity can cause the tongue to fall back. This narrows the airway, which reduces the amount of air that can reach your lungs. The narrowed airway causes snoring by making the tissue in back of the throat vibrate as you breathe.

Sleep apnea can make you wake up in the morning feeling tired or unrefreshed even though you have had a full night of sleep. During the day, you may feel fatigued, have difficulty concentrating or you may even unintentionally fall asleep. This is because your body is waking up numerous times throughout the night, even though you might not be conscious of each awakening.

The lack of oxygen your body receives can have negative long-term consequences for your health. This includes:

There are many people with sleep apnea who have not been diagnosed or received treatment. A physician can diagnose obstructive sleep apnea using an in-lab sleep study or a home sleep apnea test. Sleep apnea is manageable using continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy, the front-line treatment for sleep apnea, oral appliance therapy or surgery.

Obstructive sleep apnea in adults is considered a sleep-related breathing disorder. Causes and symptoms differ for obstructive sleep apnea in children and central sleep apnea.

Testing Process

A home sleep apnea test is designed to be a convenient way to collect information about your sleep. On the day of your test:

If you are on a regular medication, speak with your physician. Your doctor may recommend that you temporarily discontinue using the medication.

Alternatively, someone may deliver the home sleep apnea test to your home. A member of the sleep team will give you instructions on how to use the home sleep apnea test device. This is an opportunity for you to ask questions if there is anything you do not understand. You can go to sleep at your regular bedtime. When you are ready to sleep, you will attach the sensors to your body as instructed. You may be asked to keep a sleep log or to press a button on the machine when you get into bed. When you wake up in the morning, you can remove the sensors. You may have to take the device back to the sleep center or return it through our staff.

Members of the sleep team will score and interpret the information collected through home sleep apnea testing. This may take maximum 48 hours. We will deliver the results to your Doctor and the Doctor/Physician will contact you to discuss the results.

If you are diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea, the Doctor/Physician will discuss treatment options with you and develop a plan.