GETTING a good night's sleep is often tricky but for many truckies in Liverpool it is virtually impossible.

Dr Shu Chan of the Liverpool Sleep Disorder Clinic, in Bigge St, said a high percentage of truck drivers suffered from a little known condition called sleep apnoea.

The clinic specialises in treating the condition which causes throat muscles to relax during sleep to the point of blocking the airway above the voice box.

Breathing stops for between a second and a minute until the brain registers a lack of breathing sending a small wake-up call rousing the sleeper slightly.

This also causes him or her to snort or snore.

Dr Chan said: "The worst case I have seen was a 15-year-old boy who would wake up 150 times an hour.

"He was so bad he was bed wetting.

"When the oxygen gets too low it can cause the sphincter to relax and cause bed wetting which can be very damaging psychologically.

"If you stop breathing even 20 times per hour you are more likely to want to go to the toilet."

He warned this may lead men to believe they have a prostate problem and some undergo unnecessary surgery.

Sleep apnoea affects around 5 per cent of Australians but around 80 per cent of Liverpudlians who visit the clinic have the condition, he said.

It can be caused by drinking alcohol in the evenings, a reduced thyroid hormone or very large goiter, large tonsils, taking sleeping tablets or sedatives and nasal congestion.

"It affects people across the board," Dr Chan said. "But the average age is around 35.

"The area where we have a major concern for the community is truck drivers. An RTA study discovered that 60 per cent of crashes were related to people with sleep apnoea."

Professional people are also prone to the condition which leaves them feeling fatigued or drowsy in the morning.