Patient-Friendly Explanation

Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is a condition where the airway repeatedly closes during sleep, causing breathing to stop and start through the night. It leads to loud snoring, daytime sleepiness, and unrefreshing sleep. Being overweight is one of the strongest risk factors, because extra tissue can narrow the airway when you lie down.

Clinical Definition

Obstructive sleep apnoea involves recurrent episodes of partial or complete upper airway collapse during sleep, producing intermittent hypoxia, sleep fragmentation, and sympathetic activation. Obesity contributes through pharyngeal fat deposition, reduced lung volumes, and altered ventilatory control, and the two conditions share metabolic pathways including insulin resistance. Untreated OSA increases the risk of hypertension, atrial fibrillation, stroke, and cardiovascular mortality.

Why It Matters

Weight loss of 10 percent or more can substantially reduce OSA severity, and some patients are able to stop using CPAP therapy. NuLifeCare Singapore can support you with evidence-based weight management as part of a complete sleep health plan.