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Apnea central del sueño - Overview

Definición:

Se presenta cuando uno deja de respirar en forma repetitiva durante el sueño, debido a que el cerebro suspende temporalmente el envío de señales a los músculos que controlan la respiración.

Ver también:

Causas:

La apnea central del sueño ocurre con frecuencia en personas que tienen ciertas afecciones. Por ejemplo, se puede presentar en personas que tienen problemas potencialmente mortales con el tronco encefálico, que controla la respiración.

Las afecciones que pueden causar o llevar a la apnea central del sueño son, entre otras:

  • Artritis y cambios degenerativos en la columna cervical o la base del cráneo
  • Poliomielitis bulbar
  • Complicaciones de una cirugía de la columna cervical
  • Encefalitis que afecta el tronco encefálico
  • Enfermedades neurodegenerativas como el mal de Parkinson
  • Obesidad
  • Radiación a la columna cervical
  • Accidente cerebrovascular que afecta el tronco encefálico
  • Síndrome de hipoventilación primaria
  • Uso de ciertos medicamentos como los analgésicos que contienen narcóticos

Hay una forma de apnea central del sueño que ocurre comúnmente en personas con insuficiencia cardíaca congestiva.

Si la apnea no está asociada con otra enfermedad, se denomina apnea central del sueño idiopática.

La apnea central del sueño no es lo mismo que apnea obstructiva del sueño, la cual se debe a una obstrucción en la vía respiratoria.

Una afección llamada respiración de Cheyne-Stokes puede enmascarar la apnea central del sueño. Esto implica respirar hasta una profundidad variable, por lo general mientras se duerme.

  • Reviewed last on: 8/5/2011
  • David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine; Denis Hadjiliadis, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

Referencias

Eckert DJ, Jordan AS, Merchia P, Malhotra A. Central sleep apnea: pathophysiology and treatment. Chest. 2007;131:595-607.

Malhotra A. Disorders of ventilatory control. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Cecil Medicine. 24th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2011:chap 86.

Pien GW, Pack AI. Sleep disordered breathing. In: Mason RJ, Broaddus VC, Martin TR, et al, eds. Murray and Nadel’s Textbook of Respiratory Medicine. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2010:chap 79.

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