- Excessive daytime sleepiness (falling asleep while eating, talking or driving)
- Waking up tired
- Bed partner is often worried about other health problems
- Patient may be unaware of own sleep disturbances
- Loud snoring
- Holding the breath during the night
- Loud snorts and gasps upon the resumption of breathing
- May cause marital problems
- Sometimes dry throat, dry mouth, and headache in morning
- Problems with memory and concentration
- Morning or night headaches affect approximately 50% of patients
- Heartburn or reflux
- Swelling of the legs
- Needing to urinate during the night
- Sweating during sleep
- Chest pain
- Temporary elevations in blood pressure
- Blood oxygen desaturation
- Arousal from sleep
- Sympathetic activation
- Can cause elevated blood pressure during the day, possibly leading to hypertension and heart disease.
Sleep apnoea symptoms in children
Children younger than five years of age
- Frequently waking up
- Snoring
- Sweating
- Mouth breathing
- Restlessness
Over five years of age
- Snoring
- Short attention span
- Poor academic performance
- Behavioural problems
- Bed wetting
- Not growing as quickly as they should be for their age
Sleep apnoea during pregnancy
In a paper entiled Sleep Apnea May Increase the Risk of Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes; “women with severe sleep apnea had the highest incidence of adverse pregnancy outcomes. This increased prevalence was principally driven by a higher incidence of gestational diabetes and early preterm birth. The authors noted that sleep apnea has been associated with heart disease, metabolic syndrome and mortality in non-pregnant populations. However, few studies have examined the relationship between sleep apnea in pregnancy and adverse obstetrical outcomes. “Our findings suggest that moderate to severe sleep-disordered breathing may be associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes, particularly gestational diabetes and preterm birth,” said principal investigator Dr. Francesca L. Facco, assistant professor in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University in Chicago. “However, it is unclear if sleep-disordered breathing is a risk factor for adverse pregnancy outcomes independent of obesity.”1
Stacey et al in a paper entitled Association between maternal sleep practices and risk of late stillbirth: a case-control study “The prevalence of late stillbirth in this study was 3.09/1000 births. No relation was found between snoring or daytime sleepiness and risk of late stillbirth. However, women who slept on their back or on their right side on the previous night (before stillbirth or interview) were more likely to experience a late stillbirth compared with women who slept on their left side (adjusted odds ratio for back sleeping 2.54 (95% CI 1.04 to 6.18), and for right side sleeping 1.74 (0.98 to 3.01)). The absolute risk of late stillbirth for women who went to sleep on their left was 1.96/1000 and was 3.93/1000 for women who did not go to sleep on their left. Women who got up to go to the toilet once or less on the last night were more likely to experience a late stillbirth compared with women who got up more frequently (adjusted odds ratio 2.28 (1.40 to 3.71)). Women who regularly slept during the day in the previous month were also more likely to experience a late stillbirth than those who did not (2.04 (1.26 to 3.27)).” 2
“Although sleep complaints are extremely common among pregnant women, we are just beginning to learn about the potential adverse effects of sleep disturbance and sleep disorders on maternal-fetal health. A relationship during pregnancy and the postpartum period between poor sleep and negative mood and performance, or outcomes such as postpartum depression, has been proposed; however, as yet, there are not compelling data to support this relationship. Growing evidence does suggest that SDB is common among pregnant women and can negatively impact maternal-fetal outcomes.” 3
References:
- Sleep Apnea May Increase the Risk of Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes ScienceDaily (June 14, 2011)
- Tomasina Stacey, John M D Thompson, Ed A Mitchell, Alec J Ekeroma, Jane M Zuccollo, Lesley M E McCowan Association between maternal sleep practices and risk of late stillbirth: a case-control study BMJ 2011; 342:d3403
- Grace W. Pien, MD; Richard J. Schwab, M Sleep Disorders During Pregnancy SLEEP 2004;27(7):1405-17
- Patrick McKeown, author of Sleep with Buteyko provides Stop snoring courses in Dublin.
