Sleep apnea is a common disorder that many suffer from, and can potentially be very dangerous. Some signs may be small, such as snoring, but this disorder is most commonly linked to a suspension in breathing during the night. The main forms of this disorder are obstructive and central sleep apnea, which often have overlapping symptoms. Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when the throat muscles relax while a person is asleep. Otherwise, a period during sleep where the brain fails to send the signals that enable breathing is classified as central sleep apnea. These two may both be present in one person, which is known as complex sleep apnea.Again, the disorder can be very dangerous, and it can also present itself with a wide variety of symptoms. Causes of the sleeping disorder vary between the two types. With obstructive sleep apnea, the relaxing of the throat muscles causes the airway to become restricted so you are unable to take a normal breath, which the brain will sense and then send alerts to rouse you from sleep. Similarly, breathing is periodically stopped with central apnea, and you may also wake short of breath. This can happen many times throughout the night for both types; also, symptoms of each may overlap.
