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Ashley Olivine is a health psychologist and public health professional with over a decade of experience serving clients in the clinical setting and private practice. Smita Patel, MD is triple board-certified in neurology, sleep medicine, and integrative medicine. The condition ranges in severity from a mild decrease in airflow to airflow completely stopping, which can be life-threatening. Sleep apnea has multiple causes, including the tongue or tissues in the airways blocking the air or challenges related to the signals sent from the brain to control breathing during sleep. It is used with sleep testing to diagnose the condition and determine how severe it is. Learn more about sleep apnea, the apnea-hypopnea index, other tests for sleep apnea, and treatment options.

A pause in breathing must last 10 seconds or more to be counted. AHI in sleep testing that is done at home. The AHI is the total number of times a person experiences apneas and hypopneas in one night divided by the total number of hours of sleep. The result is the average number per hour. For example, a person with an AHI of 12 experiences an average of 12 episodes of apneas or hypopneas for each hour of sleep. 10 seconds, 12 times per hour.