Sleep apnea. Now what?

It's estimated that patients with sleep apnea are 2-4 four times more likely to develop heart arrhythmias (abnormal heart rhythms) than people without this condition. Sleep apnea increases the risk of heart failure by 140% and the risk of coronary heart disease by 30%.

News of the official cause of death of iconic Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher (Princess/General Leia) has swept the Internet, leaving open many unanswered questions. The headlines suggesting Fisher’s death at age 60 was caused by obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) are giving many people reason to pause.

The NFL and sleep apnea have long been associated in the popular consciousness, with many former players like former Green Bay Packers and San Diego Chargers lineman Aaron Taylor publicly discussing their struggles with the condition.

“New year, new you” is an age-old saying, but it still resonates. Especially when the “new you” is looking to make a serious change in your health. More specifically, sleep health as it relates to obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

Diabetes and sleep apnea are strongly associated with one another. Clinical research shows that as many as 48% of people diagnosed with type 2 diabetes have also been diagnosed with sleep apnea.¹ Even more striking, researchers believe that 86% of obese type 2 diabetic patients suffer from sleep apnea

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common problem that affects a person’s breathing during sleep. A person with OSA has times during sleep in which air cannot flow normally into the lungs. The block in airflow (obstruction) is usually caused by the collapse of the soft tissues in the back of the throat (upper airway) and tongue during sleep

Obstructive sleep apnea is the most common type of sleep apnea, and affects over 85% of people who are diagnosed with sleep apnea.1 It is caused by the muscles in the back of your throat relaxing and interfering with your breathing while you sleep.

The link between sleep apnea and stroke is staggering, even in those suffering from mild sleep apnea. Depending on the severity of sleep apnea (mild, mild to moderate or severe), someone suffering from the condition can stop breathing dozens or even hundreds of times each night.

Depression and sleep problems are health conditions that are frequently connected — not just by conventional wisdom, but by increasing clinical evidence. And, although that conversation mostly focuses on depression and sleep problems like insomnia more than, say, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) — the focus of this blog — it’s still worthwhile to point out all the ways in which sleep problems can contribute to the negative effects of depression.

As the National Sleep Foundation (NSF) puts it, “depression may cause sleep problems and sleep problems may cause or contribute to depressive disorders,” noting that symptoms of depression seem to come before sleep problems just as frequently as the other way around. In other words, it’s generally understood that depression and sleep (or lack thereof) share a complicated relationship. What isn’t clear is the nature of that relationship. Does one cause the other?

Anxiety and sleep apnea are like fish and water: Find one, and you’ll usually find the other, too.

This connection is supported by more and more studies as the years pass. For example, in December 2012, a major European medical journal published a study ¹ finding that more than half of patients diagnosed with sleep disorders “had some degrees of depression and anxiety.”

CPAP machines are quiet, and are offered in a multitude of varieties to ensure that each type of patient need is met. The three main types of CPAP masks are:

• Nasal masks, which cover the nose
• Full face masks, which cover the nose and mouth
• Nasal pillows, which rest at the base of the nose and are the smallest and lightest mask type