What is obstructive sleep apnea?

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common sleep apnea caused by obstruction of the airway. It is characterized by pauses in breathing during sleep. These episodes, called apneas, each last long enough that one or more breaths are missed.

How do members experience obstructive sleep apnea?

Top 5 symptoms reported by people with obstructive sleep apnea*

*Reports may be affected by other conditions and/or medication side effects. We ask about general symptoms (anxious mood, depressed mood, fatigue, pain, and stress) regardless of condition.

Top treatments taken by people for obstructive sleep apnea*

*Data from patients with obstructive sleep apnea, who have ever reported treatments, ordered by their reporting frequency during the last 5 years.

Compare treatments taken by people with obstructive sleep apnea*

Treatment
Perceived effectiveness
Side effects
Total evaluations
Tried for
Treatment

(System One CPAP machine)
Perceived effectiveness
No evaluations
Side effects
No evaluations
Total evaluations
0
Tried for
obstructive sleep apnea (5)

*Data from patients with obstructive sleep apnea, who have ever reported treatments, ordered by their reporting frequency during the last 5 years.

Who has obstructive sleep apnea on PatientsLikeMe?

Age

Age Proportion # of patients
<20 4
20s 25
30s 110
40s 290
50s 537
60s 591
70+ 348

Distribution of sex

Sex

Sex Proportion # of patients
Male 651
Female 1,240

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What is obstructive sleep apnea?

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common sleep apnea caused by obstruction of the airway. It is characterized by pauses in breathing during sleep. These episodes, called apneas, each last long enough that one or more breaths are missed.



Common symptoms reported by people with obstructive sleep apnea

Common symptoms
How bad it is
What people are taking for it

Reports may be affected by other conditions and/or medication side effects. We ask about general symptoms (anxious mood, depressed mood, fatigue, pain, and stress) regardless of condition.
Last updated:



Treatments taken by people for obstructive sleep apnea

Treatment name(s)
Type
How many have tried
Tried for
Treatment name(s)

(System One CPAP machine)
Type
Equipment
How many have tried
535
Tried for
obstructive sleep apnea (5)

Data from patients with obstructive sleep apnea, who have ever reported treatments, ordered by their reporting frequency during the last 5 years.
Last updated:


Compare treatments taken by people with obstructive sleep apnea

Treatment name(s)
Perceived effectiveness
Side effects
Total evaluations
Tried for
Treatment name(s)

(System One CPAP machine)
Perceived effectiveness
No evaluations
Side effects
No evaluations
Total evaluations
0
Tried for
obstructive sleep apnea (5)
  • Major
  • Moderate
  • Slight
  • None
  • Can't tell
  • Severe
  • Moderate
  • Mild
  • None

Data from patients with obstructive sleep apnea, who have ever reported treatments, ordered by their reporting frequency during the last 5 years.
Last updated:



Who has obstructive sleep apnea on PatientsLikeMe?

  • 3 new patients joined this month
  • 290 say OSA is their primary condition

Age
Age Proportion # of patients
<20 4
20s 25
30s 110
40s 290
50s 537
60s 591
70+ 348
Age at first symptom
Age at first symptom Proportion # of patients
0-19 years 79
20-29 years 134
30-39 years 230
40-49 years 245
50-59 years 124
60-69 years 24
70+ years 4

Distribution of sex

Sex
Sex Proportion # of patients
Male 651
Female 1,240

Diagnosis status
Diagnosis status Proportion # of patients
Diagnosed 1,197
Not Diagnosed 17

These charts show data from OSA patients who have completed their condition history
Last updated: