apnoea

A patient is monitored for apnoea during a sleep study.

Definition

Noun:
- Medical condition: "Apnoea" refers to a temporary cessation of breathing, especially during sleep. It is a medical term describing the absence of respiratory airflow for a period of time.

Usage Examples

Noun:
- The patient was diagnosed with sleep apnoea, which caused him to wake up frequently during the night. (A medical condition involving pauses in breathing during sleep.)
- Infants with apnoea require close monitoring to ensure their breathing resumes normally. (A temporary stop in breathing in newborns.)

Advanced Usage

"sleep apnoea": a common disorder where breathing repeatedly stops and starts during sleep.
- Her sleep apnoea was treated with a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine. (A specific type of apnoea that occurs during sleep.)
"central apnoea": a form of apnoea caused by the brain failing to signal the muscles to breathe.
- Central apnoea is less common than obstructive sleep apnoea. (A subtype related to neurological control of breathing.)

Variants and Related Words

Apnoeic (adj): relating to or characterized by apnoea.
- The apnoeic episode lasted for 30 seconds before the patient started breathing again. (Describing a period without breathing.)
Apnoea-hypopnoea index (AHI): a measure used to assess the severity of sleep apnoea.
- An AHI score of 15 indicates moderate sleep apnoea. (A clinical metric for diagnosis.)

Synonyms

Breathlessness: difficulty in breathing, though not necessarily a complete stop.
Respiratory arrest: a more severe term for complete cessation of breathing.

Phrasal Verbs

None directly associated with "apnoea" as a noun. However, the verb phrase "to suffer from apnoea" is common.
- He suffers from apnoea and uses a breathing machine at night. (To experience the condition.)

Related Idioms