Editing Sleep apnea (section)

====Potential complications====
Several inpatient and outpatient procedures use sedation. Many drugs and agents used during surgery to relieve pain and to depress consciousness remain in the body at low amounts for hours or even days afterwards. In an individual with either central, obstructive or mixed sleep apnea, these low doses may be enough to cause life-threatening irregularities in breathing or collapses in a patient's airways.<ref>{{cite book |first1=T. Scott |last1=Johnson |first2=William A. |last2=Broughton |first3=Jerry |last3=Halberstadt |title=Sleep Apnea&nbsp;– The Phantom of the Night: Overcome Sleep Apnea Syndrome and Win Your Hidden Struggle to Breathe, Sleep, and Live |publisher=New Technology Publishing |year=2003 |isbn=978-1-882431-05-2 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/sleepapneaphanto0000john }}{{Page needed|date=September 2010}}</ref> Use of [[Analgesic|analgesics]] and sedatives in these patients postoperatively should therefore be minimized or avoided.<ref name="Chang-2023" />

Surgery on the mouth and throat, as well as dental surgery and procedures, can result in postoperative swelling of the lining of the mouth and other areas that affect the airway. Even when the surgical procedure is designed to improve the airway, such as [[tonsillectomy]] and [[adenoidectomy]] or tongue reduction, swelling may negate some of the effects in the immediate postoperative period. Once the swelling resolves and the palate becomes tightened by postoperative scarring, however, the full benefit of the surgery may be noticed.<ref name="Chang-2023" />

A person with sleep apnea undergoing any medical treatment must make sure their doctor and [[Nurse anesthetist|anesthetist]] are informed about the sleep apnea. Alternative and emergency procedures may be necessary to maintain the airway of sleep apnea patients.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/SleepApnea/SleepApnea_LivingWith.html |title=What is Sleep Apnea? |year=2012 |website=National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute |publisher=National Institutes of Health |access-date=15 February 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110828030048/http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/SleepApnea/SleepApnea_LivingWith.html |archive-date=28 August 2011}}</ref>