Sleep Apnea.

[Jesse00]

Hello,

I have two simple questions:

Can you have sleep apnea without snoring ? Is snoring loudly a MUST for Sleep apnea?

Thanks for any answers.

[Dr Rajput]

Hi, welcome to the forum, snoring is a sound produced due to vibration of the soft tissue in upper airways and suggests the increasing resistance to air flow. Snoring is seen in sleep apnea but it is not necessary that snoring should be associated with sleep apnea.

There are many conditions which is associated with snoring. It can be associated with conditions that narrow the upper airway, including obesity, nasal congestion, craniofacial abnormalities, hypothyroidism, acromegaly, and adenotonsillar hypertrophy.

You need to get polysomnography or portable monitoring done to rule out sleep apnea. With careful history, physical examination of upper airways and thyroid status will help to rule out the cause.
Change the sleeping position because you tend to snore more when sleeping on your back, sleeping on your side may be helpful, avoid caffeine and other drugs before sleep, avoid day sleeping, relax the throat muscles so that airway gets cleared, keep proper ventilation in room, wear loose cotton dress in night.

I suggest you to consult physician. Take care and regards.

[marydwayne]

i was diagnosed with sleep apnea after sleep studies was done and i do not snore at all but i do snort from it

[beelzebubba]

You definitely do not need to be a snorer to have sleep apnea. Although I do snore (and have severe sleep apmea), my sister in-law also has sleep apnea and it was a shock to everyone cause she does not snore, is pretty thin, and has no real complaints about her sleeping. She does have migraines and found out while looking for solutions to that problem. So rest assured that you can sleep quietly and have sleep apnea. If you are concerned for yourself, talk to your doctor and tell him you would like to do a "sleeo study". Most likely he will know where you can go to get one. That is the best way to get a diagnosis.
Good luck to you and don't worry, sleep apnea can be treated.