Hockenbury Discovering Psychology 5th txtbk

Sleep Disorders155Obstructive Sleep ApneaBlocked Breathing During SleepExcessive daytime sleepiness is also a key symptom of thesecond most common sleep disorder. In obstructivesleep apnea (OSA), the sleeper’s airway becomes narrowedor blocked, causing very shallow breathing or repeatedpauses in breathing. Over the course of a night,300 or more sleep apnea episodes can occur (Schwab &others, 2005).Each time breathing stops, oxygen blood levels decreaseand carbon dioxide blood levels increase. In responseto these internal warning signals, the brain triggersa momentary awakening. As breathing resumes andthe sleeper gulps in air, snorting or choking sounds typicallyoccur. Often the sleeper has no recollection ofthese repeated brief awakenings. Not surprisingly, these symptoms are usually firstnoticed by the sleeper’s bed partner or another family member.Obstructive sleep apnea disrupts the quality and quantity of a person’s sleep,causing daytime grogginess, poor concentration, memory and learning problems,and irritability (Weaver & George, 2005). It also increases other serious health risks,such as high blood pressure, heart attack, and stroke.Family and twin studies indicate that obstructive sleep apnea tends to run in families(Redline, 2005). Although OSA can occur in any age group, including small children,it becomes more common as people age. It is also more common in men thanwomen. Among middle-aged adults, about 1 out of 25 men and 1 out of 50 womenhave sleep apnea. Among senior adults, approximately 1 in 10 has sleep apnea.Sleep apnea can often be treated with lifestyle changes, such as avoiding alcoholor losing weight (Hoffstein, 2005; Powell & others, 2005). For people who experiencesleep apnea only when they sleep on their backs, treatment can be as simpleas sewing a tennis ball to the back of their pajama tops, forcing the person to sleepon his or her side. Moderate to severe cases of sleep apnea are usually treated withcontinuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), which is described in the photo caption(Grunstein, 2005).Treating Sleep Apnea: CPAP The mostcommon treatment for sleep apnea isCPAP, which stands for continuouspositive airway pressure. The sleepingperson wears a mask that covers thenose and sometimes the mouth. Aflexible tube connects the mask to theCPAP machine, which gently blows airthrough the airway passage at a pressurethat is high enough to keep theairway open. For people with moderateto severe sleep apnea, CPAP treatmentoften produces rapid improvements,including reduced daytime sleepiness,greater alertness, and reduced bloodpressure (Lindberg & others, 2006;Lüthje & Andreas, 2008).NarcolepsyBlurring the Boundaries Between Sleep and WakefulnessEven with adequate nighttime sleep, people with narcolepsy experience overwhelmingbouts of excessive daytime sleepiness and brief, uncontrollable episodesof sleep. These involuntary sleep episodes, called sleep attacks or microsleeps, typicallylast from a few seconds to several minutes. After the brief sleep episode, the personusually feels refreshed. And, for the next hour or two, grogginess and drowsinessdiminish.During a microsleep, people with narcolepsy can display automatic behavior andcontinue performing a routine behavior, such as writing or text messaging. But asyou might suspect, task performance is impaired. Handwriting becomes illegible.Mistyped letters occur. This automatic behavior is very similar to the movementcapabilities that can occur during normal NREM sleep at night.Most people with narcolepsy—about 70 percent—experience regular episodes ofcataplexy. Much like the suppression of voluntary muscle movements that occursduring normal REM sleep, cataplexy is the sudden loss of voluntary muscle strengthand control, lasting from several seconds to several minutes. Usually triggered by asudden, intense emotion, such as laughter, anger, fear, or surprise, mild cataplecticepisodes might not even be noticed by others. The narcoleptic person’s eyelids orhead droops. His or her grip of an object loosens. Facial muscles momentarily sag.obstructive sleep apnea(APP-nee-uh) A sleep disorder in which theperson repeatedly stops breathing duringsleep.narcolepsy(NAR-ko-lep-see) A sleep disorder characterizedby excessive daytime sleepiness andbrief lapses into sleep throughout the day.cataplexyA sudden loss of voluntary muscle strengthand control that is usually triggered by anintense emotion.