COMMON SLEEP DISORDER CAN LEAD TO SERIOUS HEALTH RISK
23 July 2004 - Duke University

Individuals with obstructive sleep apnea typically snore heavily and experience frequent cessations of breathing during sleep. This common condition can lead to serious medical problems if left untreated.

Twenty percent of Americans have trouble sleeping. Many of them have a condition called sleep apnea, a respiratory disorder marked by brief interruptions of breathing during sleep. Andrew Krystal, director of the Sleep Research Laboratory and Insomnia Program at Duke University Medical Center, describes typical warning signs of sleep apnea. "If they're sleepy during the day, if they're loud snorers, if they are known to stop breathing by someone observing them, if they have morning headaches or dry mouth, high blood pressure that doesn't respond to treatment, these are all signs that the disease sleep apnea may be present and are reasons to get evaluated." Krystal says the condition can lead to serious trouble, including heart failure, if left untreated, and he recommends an overnight sleep evaluation to diagnose the cause of the problem. The most common sleep apnea treatment is continuous positive airway pressure, which blows air into the nose via mask or nose plugs. For many people (and their sleep partners), it's a godsend. "People say, 'This is a miracle. I can't believe it.' Those people, you couldn't get their sleep apnea device away from them. You'd have to fight pretty hard." I'm Cabell Smith for MedMinute.

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