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Apnoea is a Greek word meaning “without breath.” There are three types of apnoea during sleep: central, obstructive and mixed. Mixed apnoea is a combination of central and obstructive sleep apnoea. It can be argued with some conviction that chronic hyperventilation offers an explanation for both types of sleep apnoea. Central Sleep Apnoea Central sleep apnoea affects approximately 5% of sufferers and results from the

Sleep apnoea is increasing in prevalence, and this trend shows no signs of abating. In a paper published in the Chest Journal, Lawrence et al. wrote, “the demand for sleep medicine services has grown tremendously during the last decade and will likely continue.” Studies have shown that a substantial proportion of the European and American populations have sleep apnoea. The American Lung Association estimates that abo

The normal treatment for obstructive sleep apnoea is a CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) machine. The patient wears a mask over the face and air is applied at a pressure that exceeds the airway opening pressure, thereby enabling the patient to breathe without cessation. In simple terms, it may be best understood as a small vacuum cleaner working in reverse, applying sufficient air pressure to force the airwa

For ten years, children and adults with asthma and other respiratory disorders have attended my AsthmaCare courses in Ireland and abroad. One striking observation is the number of patients who attend for asthma but who also reported suffering from snoring, sleep apnoea, and chronic fatigue. This is not surprising given the physiological effects from chronic hyperventilation that contribute to narrowing of the airways

Konstantin Buteyko discovered that the best position to sleep was on the left hand side or on the tummy. Ventilation is reduced while sleeping on the left-hand side given the position of the heart and on the tummy given the weight of the body restricting breathing. Many studies show that sleeping on the back (supine position) is most contributory to snoring and sleep apnoea for both children and adults. Here, we exam

It is inevitable that a child with a blocked nose will breathe through his mouth. Mouth breathing children often develop poor facial structures such as undeveloped chins, narrow faces and nostrils, crooked teeth, sunken cheeks and eyes, and larger noses. When a growing child keeps his mouth closed, the tongue correctly rests in the roof of the mouth, creating a U-shaped top jaw. In other words, the shape of the top j