Respiratory diseases include disorders that affect breathing during sleep. Examples of respiratory disorders include central sleep apnea (CSA) and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Sleep apnea refers to the cessation of breathing during sleep. CSA is associated with incorrect sensing of carbon dioxide or oxygen levels in the blood. If nerve receptors do not send the correct neural signals, in essence deceiving the brain by reporting incorrect levels of carbon dioxide or oxygen, an incidence of CSA can occur. OSA is associated with an obstruction of the upper airway. Both CSA and OSA have serious health consequences, including association with cardiac arrhythmias and worsening heart failure. CSA and OSA can occur separately or together in a given patient during the night.
Typically, therapy for CSA is not effective for OSA, and therapy for OSA is not effective for CSA. Therefore, there is a need in the art for real-time apnea discrimination.