Definition - What does sleep disorder mean?
A sleep disorder is one of any number of disorders that are characterized by a sleep problem.
A condition may be diagnosed as a sleep disorder if it affects the quality of a person’s sleep, the timing of his or her sleep, or the amount of sleep the person gets. Common types of sleep disorders include insomnia, sleep apnea, and hypersomnia (excessive daytime sleepiness). Sleepwalking, restless leg syndrome, narcolepsy, and jet lag syndrome are also sleep disorders.
SureHire explains sleep disorder
While medical researchers have identified over 100 different types of sleep disorders, most fall within four broader categories. These are insomnia, excessive daytime sleepiness, sleep rhythm problems, and sleep-disruptive behaviors. In some instances, a person may experience problems related to more than one of these larger categories. This is because the individual causes of a person’s sleep disorder may trigger more than one type of symptom. For example, someone who experiences disrupted sleep at night may then suffer from excessive daytime sleepiness during the day.
Treatment for sleep disorders will vary depending on the underlying cause. In some instance, the sleep disorder is caused by an underlying condition such as mononucleosis or fibromyalgia that require medication or other treatment. In other cases, such as obstructive sleep apnea, a nighttime breathing apparatus such as an auto positive airway pressure (APAP) or (CPAP) continuous positive airway pressure machine is used to treat the condition.
