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| Definition: |
Cessation of breathing during sleep caused by problems with brain mechanisms that control breathing. It is not the more common sleep apnea caused by obesity or other problems which results in loud snoring.
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| Alternative Names: |
Sleep apnea - central
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| Causes, incidence, and risk factors: |
| Central sleep apnea is rare in the general population. It occurs in patients with a variety of severe and life threatening lower brain stem lesions such as bulbar poliomyelitis, encephalitis affecting the brainstem, neurodegenerative illnesses, stroke affecting the brainstem, complications of surgery of the cervical spine, or primary hypoventilation syndrome. The brainstem controls breathing. As a result, any disease or injury affecting this area may result in problems with normal breathing during sleep.
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| Symptoms: |
| Cessation of breathing, especially during sleep. People with primary sleep apnea of unknown cause may have frequent awakenings and complain of insomnia. If a neurological condition is causing the apnea, it may also produce other symptoms such as difficulty swallowing, change in voice, variable weakness or numbness throughout the body depending on the underlying disease and what parts of the nervous system it has affected. |
| Signs and tests: |
- Respiratory function studies
- All night polygraphic sleep monitoring
- MRI
- Tests to diagnose underlying medical condition
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| Treatment: |
| If there is no respiratory drive as a result of an injury or disease of the brainstem, mechanical ventilation is the only treatment available to ensure continued breathing. |
| Expectations (prognosis): |
| Injury to the brain stem is life-threatening and prognosis is guarded as a result. |
| Complications: |
| Complications may result from prolonged mechanical ventilation and from the underlying disease causing the syndrome. |
| Calling your health care provider: |
| Call your healthcare provider if you have symptoms that might be sleep apnea. Central sleep apnea is usually diagnosed in already severely medically ill individuals. |
| Prevention: |
| There is no known prevention of central sleep apnea. |
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Review Date: 8/8/2001
Reviewed By: Galit Kleiner-Fisman MD, FRCP(C), Department of Neurology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.
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