Hearing loss and sleep apnea

It seems at times that sleep apnea can be connected to just about any kind of health problem that you can imagine and that is certainly understandable considering how it affects the body.  Not getting enough or any rest makes you susceptible to injuries because of your lack of concentration. It is well known about all the things that can happen to your body when you don’t get enough oxygen (caused by obstruction in the back of the throat) such as heart disease, diabetes and blood pressure problems.  What I just found out that there might be a connection between hearing loss and sleep apnea.

There was a study done in Taiwan that suggests that there could be a link between OSA and hearing loss according to Rueters.com.  Sudden hearing loss was found in people who had sleep apnea as well, although the percentage wasn’t that high.  A Doctor is quoted in the article that the problem of sudden hearing loss may be due to plaque in the blood vessels which can occur with sleep apnea. The vessels of the brain that control hearing may also be affected by plaque as well causing hearing loss. While nothing can be substantiated or definitely proven it opens up another area to study with regards to sleep apnea.

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Sleep apnea, strokes and small lesions

I have read in the past about the connection between strokes and sleep apnea.  Unlike a heart attack a stroke has to do with the blood supply being cut off from the brain which in turn stops certain functions within the brain. Stroke victims often suffer from paralysis and diminished body control due to brain damage.  Similar to sleep apnea, diabetes and high blood pressure can also be a factor with regards to having a stroke. 

An article from Occupational Health Safety states that small lesions in addition to strokes can come about because of sleep apnea.  The article refers to a study that shows 91 percent of the stroke victims (in the study) also had sleep apnea.  To me that is a really frightening number to think that large of percentage of stroke victims had sleep apnea beforehand. The type of stroke that they refer to is called silent strokes where there are none of the usual effects of strokes but it can be just as dangerous.  And the article goes on to say that one third of the study participants had white matter lesions which are attributed to the strokes.    

For more information on strokes go to the Stroke Organization website

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Hag phenomena and sleep apnea

There are many sleep disorders besides sleep apnea with one of the most frightening called hag phenomena or sleep paralysis. As I described in a post a few years ago sleep paralysis is what happens when you wake up and can’t move, which can be terribly frightening. The reason it is called hag phenomena that the feeling of not being able to move when you wake was compared to having a witch sitting on you in bed.

I received a comment recently regarding the sleep paralysis post

Here is part of the post from Reesy…

I have had the experience about three or four times. I consider myself to have quite a strong resolve but to wake up unable to move or breathe is horrendous. I focus so hard on trying to move and snap myself out of it but it is almost impossible - I have been researching online and most conclusions are that the body will eventually kick in and it is just connected with REM.

In fact webmd.com states that a possible reason for sleep paralysis “Sleep researchers conclude that, in most cases, sleep paralysis is simply a sign that your body is not moving smoothly through the stages of sleep” and it isn’t connected to any psychiatric problems. However a study by stanford.edu states that 16 percent of those who have experienced sleep paralysis met the criteria for panic disorders.

 For more stories on sleep paralyses check out this site.

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Can losing a few pounds help with your sleep apnea?

If you have done any research on sleep apnea and what causes it then you know the connection between it and being overweight. In fact most folks realize that being overweight increases your chances of developing sleep apnea.  Excess fat around the neck and face area contribute to the blockage of your air way which in turn causes the apnea. While there are other reasons for sleep apnea such as an enlarged tongue and a round face, being overweight is one of the main reasons why folks have sleep apnea.

Will weight loss cure your sleep apnea?

Not all the time, but it will decrease the severity of it.  According to Webmd.com “ Researchers found that people with severe obstructive sleep apnea who lost the recommended amount of weight were three times more likely to experience a complete remission of sleep apnea symptoms compared with people who didn’t lose weight.”

That is certainly good news and a definite reason to try to lose some weight. Unfortunately as we all know losing weight and keeping it off can be quite an endeavor especially for those with sleep apnea. Sleep apnea zaps you of most of your energy (which isn’t much because of the lack of sleep you get!) making it very difficult to keep up an exercise program which is has to be a part of any weight loss program along with a proper diet.

There are things that you can do like joining a weight loss program where you will be losing weight slowly which is very important and also make sure the program has a detailed exercise plan as well.

The government also has a wonderful site about all things dealing with nutrition and eating right, definitely checks it out.

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Oxygen therapy for sleep apnea

If you have been in the hospital or have visited someone there you probably have noticed that oxygen therapy is used a lot with patients. It can be administered by putting tubes in your nose to raise the amount of oxygen that you receive which is extremely important especially if your health isn’t 100 percent.  Sleep apnea also has to do with a lack of oxygen as well.  That lack of oxygen can result in serious health risks to the heart and the brain. So the question is can you use oxygen therapy for sleep apnea.

You would think that it would be reasonable to conclude that oxygen therapy would be beneficial to those with sleep apnea. Unfortunately that isn’t the case.

According to About.com there are some drawbacks to using it to help with sleep apnea such as morning headaches along with confusion. And it doesn’t seem to help with the actual apnea episodes at all.  Although it doesn’t help with obstructive sleep apnea there is an indication that it can help with central sleep apnea (sleep apnea due to brain functions instead of the throat being obstructed.  The Mayoclinic.com states that “Using supplemental oxygen while you sleep may help if you have central sleep apnea. Various forms of oxygen are available as well as different devices to deliver oxygen to your lungs.”

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Get checked for sleep apnea

In the past I have written about how difficult it is to have sleep apnea and work the late shift. Even for folks who don’t have sleep apnea changing your sleep pattern so dramatically can cause sleep problems. Years ago I had a job where I had to sleep during the day and it was very difficult to get used to it (at the time I didn’t know that I had sleep apnea either. Last week I work a post about the growing concern of police officers having sleep disorders particularly sleep apnea. I received a comment from someone who had police officers in her family. She also wrote about her own situation regarding being a nurse and working the night shift.

Here is part of the comment…

I am a Nurse and used to work nights. I had much difficulty with a sleep pattern that worked for me. I began to fall asleep at work, driving, at the dinner table etc...The dr. thought I had sleep apnea but it wasn't until I became non responsive at the dinner table with my family thinking it was a normal episode until I would not respond at all. I ended up in Critical Care Unit for 3 days and my husband insisted for them to check for apnea which he has asked for years. They finally listened I have severe apnea, obstructive, mixed, central w 42 apnea events at normal sleep and 72 at REM. I now have bi-pap. Sleep apnea is not an easy thing to live and do everyday activity.

Thank goodness she was able to get help before it was too late. I hope that the bi-pap works for her, although I didn’t have much luck with it.

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Sleep apnea in children may lead to diabetes

While you hear a lot about sleep apnea today most of it involves how adults are handling or not handling this sleep disorder. But children of all ages can also have sleep apnea and like adults they can suffer from the same problems that are brought about by this disorder. There are 2 very dangerous problems that can occur with sleep apnea, one is heart disease and the other is diabetes which can also affect children.

A study had taken place at the University of Arizona where 50 children between the ages of 10 and 16 all having diabetes but only one third having sleep apnea. Their health was monitored.

According to Medpagetoday.com “Diabetic children with more nightly apnea events had significantly higher glucose levels and spent more time in hyperglycemia than young type 1 diabetics without sleep disturbances”

The study concludes that diabetic children with apnea not only have a worse condition of diabetes their day to day life including school is also made worse, even if they are following a strict lifestyle for diabetic patients.

Children have sleep apnea for much of the same reasons that adults do: being overweight, enlarged tongue and the shape of their faces.  And like adults their options for correcting sleep apnea are the CPAP mask and surgery, such are removing tonsils and adenoids.

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