Is snoring the same as sleep apnea?

Snoring and sleep apnea are not the same thing. Snoring is simply a loud
sound that you make during breathing while asleep if there is any
obstruction in your airway. While it may be unpleasant for your sleep
partner, snoring is not in itself a harmful condition. On the other hand,
people with sleep apnea are deprived of oxygen due to a complete blockage of
airways, which can have a major impact on health.

Snoring does often accompany sleep apnea, but just because you snore does
not mean you have sleep apnea.

Types of sleep apnea

There are three types of sleep apnea: obstructive, central, and mixed.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)

OSA is the most common type of sleep apnea. It is caused by a breathing
obstruction, which stops the air flow in the nose and mouth.

Central Sleep Apnea (CSA)

Central sleep apnea is a far rarer type of sleep apnea, which occurs when
the brain signal that instructs the body to breathe is delayed. This central
nervous system disorder can be caused by disease or injury involving the
brainstem, such as a stroke, brain tumor, viral brain infection, or
chronic respiratory disease. People with CSA seldom snore, which makes it
even harder to diagnose as they do not fit the "normal" profile of a sleep
apnea sufferer. However, while the causes of the breathing cessation are
different in CSA and OSA, the symptoms and results are much the same ­ a
deprivation of oxygen and poor sleep due to repeated awakenings at night.
The treatments for CSA include specific medications that stimulate the need
to breathe and administration of oxygen.

Mixed sleep apnea

Mixed sleep apnea is a combination of the two types of sleep apnea,
obstructive sleep apnea and central sleep apnea. A person with mixed sleep
apnea will often snore, but finds that treatments which only help
obstructions in the airways do not completely stop apnea episodes. Treatment
usually includes a combination of the treatments used for OSA and CSA.

Causes and risk factors of obstructive sleep apnea
When you have obstructive sleep apnea, your throat collapses during sleep,
blocking the airway and preventing air from getting to the lungs. Generally,
your throat muscles keep the throat and airway open.

Causes and risk factors of sleep apnea:

• Shape of head and neck may create a smaller than normal airway
  
• Large tonsils, adenoids or other anatomical differences (a deviated
  septum, enlarged tongue, or receding chin can also create difficulties
  breathing during sleep)
  
• Being overweight or obese (almost 50% of people with sleep apnea
  are not obese)
  
• Throat muscles and tongue relax more than normal during sleep (can be
  due to alcohol or sedative)
  
• Snoring can cause the soft palate to lengthen, which in turn can
  obstruct the airway
  
• Smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke
  
• Nasal congestion, nasal blockages, and nasal irritants
  
• Family history of sleep apnea - no specific genetic marker for sleep apnea
  has been discovered, but obstructive sleep apnea seems to run in families
  (may be a result of anatomic abnormalities that run in the family)
  
• Other disorders and syndromes - hypothyroidism, acromegaly, amyloidosis,
  vocal cord paralysis, post-polio syndrome, neuromuscular disorders, Marfan's
  Syndrome, and Down Syndrome
  
• Other physical conditions such as immune system abnormalities, severe
  heartburn or acid reflux and high blood pressure (it isn't clear whether the
  conditions are the cause or the result of sleep apnea)
  

Effects of sleep apnea on health

What happens when you stop breathing during sleep?
If you have sleep apnea, you stop breathing during sleep and the balance of
oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood is upset. This imbalance stimulates
the brain to restart the breathing process. The brain signals you to wake up
so that the muscles of the tongue and throat can increase the size of the
airway. Then, carbon dioxide can escape and oxygen can enter the airway.
These waking episodes are necessary to restart breathing (and to save your
life), but because of them, you become sleep-deprived.

Sleep apnea has serious health consequences and can even be
life-threatening. The main effects of sleep apnea are sleep deprivation and
oxygen deprivation.