Daytime sleepiness occurs when the person has an irresistible desire to sleep while awake. This can happen due to chronic sleep deprivation or due to a disease called sleep paralysis or narcolepsy.
Individuals who sleep fewer than four or more than ten hours have been reported to have increased rates of mortality. The commonest cause of daytime sleepiness is obstructive sleep apnea (episodes of blocked breathing) and is associated with nighttime snoring. It is also potentially the most dangerous cause.
How serious is mild sleep apnea?
It does not impair daily activity or behaviour. Family members usually recognise it.
Such patients have apnea attacks about 5 to 15 events per hour. They do not suffer from high BP, right heart enlargement or lack of oxygen during sleep.
How serious is moderate sleep apnea?
These patients are usually aware of their daytime sleepiness and take steps to avoid falling asleep. They continue their daily activities, but at reduced levels. There is also a higher incidence of motor vehicle violations or accidents. Hypertension may exist. Such patients generally have apnea attacks between 15 to 30 events per hour during sleep.
What about severe apnea?
In these patients, the daytime sleepiness is disabling and interferes with normal daily activities. There are signs of right heart failure, night time heart angina, raised hemoglobin levels as well. Such patients fall asleep during the day, in a sitting posture, and are at risk for accidental injury. These patients generally have more than 30 cessations of respiration attacks per hour of sleep and oxygen saturation below 90 percent, for more than 20 percent of the total sleep time.
Another major cause Narcolepsy (chronic sleep disorder,) is the second most common cause of daytime sleepiness. The disease typical- ly begins during the teens and early twenties, but can also occur as early as five years or even after 40 years of age. The symptoms may worsen during the first few years and then persist for life. Narcolepsy is a disorder of sleep-wake state control in which elements of sleep intrude into wakefulness, and elements of wakefulness intrude into sleep. The result is daytime sleepiness with varying amounts of hypnagogic hallucinations (imagery is often auditory), sleep paralysis, and cataplexy (sudden and transient episode of loss of muscle tone). In some, sleepiness may be so severe that they may doze off with little warning (sleep attacks).
Sleep apnea vs. narcolepsy In contrast to the sleepiness of sleep apnea and other disorders, the sleepiness of narcolepsy often improves temporarily after a brief nap. Patients with narcolepsy often feel relaxed when they wake up in the morning.
I am writing this article in behalf of Health and Beauty Secret . This article gives you a complete guide about how dangerous is daytime sleeping.
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