OVERVIEW

Significant snoring can be a sign of a serious sleep disorder. It can be disruptive for both the person snoring and the bed partner.

The most common form of sleep apnea affecting 5-10% of adults – characterized by loud snoring followed by periods of silence when breathing stops or nearly stops.

Central sleep apnea is caused when the brain does not send the signal to breathe resulting in pauses in breathing and drops in oxygen levels.

People who have RLS describe it as a “crawling” or “tingling” sensation that occurs in the legs when they are trying to sleep.

Symptoms include “sleep attacks” that can occur without warning and cataplexy, which is the sudden loss of voluntary muscle control.

Insomnia is characterized by difficulty falling asleep, waking frequently during the night, waking too early in the morning and not being able to get back to sleep.

RBD is characterized by a blockage of REM sleep paralysis and the person is allowed to act out dramatic and/or violent dreams.

Periodic limb movements in sleep are repetitive movements, typically in the lower limbs, that occur about every 20-40 seconds.