So far we have addressed a few issues related to Sleep Apnea, the things that can affect it, and ways to cure this disease. There are some fellow morbidities Sleep Apnea could result in or comes as a result of, the presence of which could make the disease and its symptoms worse. Click here to read research.
Here, we take a look at
Hypertension
Research suggests that Hypertension is a bedfellow of Sleep Apnea that is caused by Obstructive Sleep Apnea. When a patient suffers from Sleep Apnea, they undergo episodes during their sleep when their breathing stops temporarily due to collapse in their air pipes. Due to this, their blood pressure increases in the night. Many a times the blood pressure stays high even when the patient is awake in the day. So hypertension, commonly referred to as Blood Pressure or the ‘Silent Killer’, is a secondary disease, caused by Sleep Apnea, in a few patients. It is said that 39% of of patients who suffer from Sleep Apnea suffer from Hypertension. Hypertension is a condition that should be dealt with along with Sleep Apnea or it could lead to stroke or heart attack.
Obesity
As we have already mentioned in previous blogs, Obesity is a condition that could result in Sleep Apnea. In general it is due to the law of gravity at work in the night. If a patient has suffers from OSA and Obesity, fat deposits that occurs around the airways can cause the airways to collapse when the patient of OSA is asleep. The blocked airways due to its collapse will increase the demand of Oxygen. In general, it is thought that Obesity is one of the primary causes of OSA. However, there are also researches that suggest that OSA can result in Obesity. Either ways, weight loss is considered a great treatment for OSA and Obesity. Research also suggests that undergoing CPAP therapy can reduce the amount of Visceral fat around the abdomen, even if weight loss is not seen. This suggest that the combination of CPAP therapy and weightloss treatment can benefit OSA and Obesity. Click here to read research.
Depression
Research shows that nearly 20% of patients who suffer from OSA also suffer from depression. The cause of depression is very hard to understand. It is thought that the presence of depression along with OSA maybe caused by sleep deprivation. Sleep is often interrupted when a patient suffers from OSA. Lack of sleep can result in mental diseases. The exact reason why depression is present in patients of OSA remains unclear till further thorough studies are conducted. Click here to read research.
Gastroesophageal reflux disease
GERD or Gastroesophageal reflux disease occurs with OSA 18% of the time. However the main cause of this co-existance is not clear yet. There are instances where GERD causes OSA. In such cases, if the esophageal sphincter which is responsible for closing after food content enters stomach, fails to function due to many reasons, the acid from the stomach travels up the food pipe. It is still not clear which of this is the primary cause for the other.
Diabetes Mellitus
Some studies have shown that 40% of the people who have OSA also have diabetes mellitus. Generally it is thought that the OSA with the presence of Diabetes Mellitus is linked to obesity. However, studies show otherwise. Studies suggest that Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and OSA have an association independent of obesity of weight gain.The exact reason is not clear. It is thought that OSA episodes can affect glycemic control.
Asthma
Studies show that the presence of OSA can make asthmatic symptoms worse. It is not clear in this case whether OSA is the primary disease or Asthma sets off OSA symptoms. Asthmatic symptoms can encourage a condition like OSA. The common symptoms of Asthma that form a perfect foundation for OSA are nasal obstruction and possibility of collapse of the upper airways. Weight gain in asthmatic patients is also responsible in exacerbating OSA symptoms. While there is a complex association between these two conditions, studies have shown that asthmatic patients are seen to be more prone to have Obstructive sleep apnea than the general population. Click here to read research.
Apparently comorbidities can be present in 56.2% of sufferers of mild OSA, 67.6% of sufferers of moderate OSA, and 70% sufferers severe OSA. Thankfully these sinister co-morbidities do not occur in about 30% of the population who are affected by Sleep Apnea.This lucky lot do not need to dig deep and fix many issues one by one in their system along with Sleep Apnea. They can just worry about and take Sleep Apnea by it’s horns and tackle this disease by taking steps that were mentioned in the previous blog. https://www.mripl.com/living-sleep-apnea/
The rest however, will need to tackle the root cause of their Sleep Apnea and its bedfellows and tackle these diseases in a systematic way. They can use the help of their physician who can give them a good plan that will take them towards a healthy lifestyle, with minimal if not no disease. The silver lining is that most of the suggestions given in the previous blogs regarding tackling OSA are also applicable for many of the co-morbidities listed here. Especially weight loss which could relieve OSA, Hypertension, Obesity, Depression and GERD is clearly one of the common threads between these diseases.Weight loss can be the stone with which these many issues can be struck together.