OSA is a chronic disease that involves repetitive pauses in breathing during sleep. These breathing pauses can prevent your body from supplying enough oxygen to the brain. In severe cases this lack of oxygen can lead to brain damage. Signs of this damage include memory problems, difficulty concentrating, and moodiness.
The good news is that studies show that treatment for sleep apnea can reverse the changes in the brain. Researchers have demonstrated that after a year of consistent treatment for sleep apnea, there is reversal of the changes to the brain. Furthermore, they also measured patients' cognitive performance.
Untreated sleep apnea can cause serious health complications, including brain damage and memory loss. Untreated OSA is associated with cognitive impairments and problems with mood, memory, and alertness.
If the sleep apnea is severe and untreated, people have three times the risk of dying from any cause. People with severe sleep apnea who spent less time in deep, also known as slow-wave sleep, had more damage to the white matter of the brain than people who had more slow-wave sleep, according to the study.
Sleep apnea itself puts an individual at a high risk of suffering from some forms of neurological conditions, for instance if you suffer from stroke as a result of this condition your neurological system will be greatly affected.
It can lead to a variety of health issues and drastically reduce life expectancy if not managed properly. Studies show that patients who develop sleep apnea before the age of fifty have a life expectancy between 8 and 18 years.
Several studies have shown an association between sleep apnea and problems like type 2 diabetes , strokes , heart attacks and even a shortened lifespan, says Jun.
While there is no cure for sleep apnea, studies show that certain lifestyle factors can reverse or make your sleep apnea less intense. Other treatment or surgical options can also reverse the condition. Sleep apnea happens when your upper airway muscles relax while you sleep.
Sleep apnea is a dangerous condition because it can cause several different complications, many of which are severe or life-threatening. These include: Heart damage and heart failure. Sleep apnea causes an increase in pressure in the blood vessels around your heart and on some of the chambers of your heart itself.
Among the brain areas affected by sleep-disordered breathing are sites within the insula, anterior cingulate, and medial frontal cortices, hippocampus, fornix, mammillary bodies, amygdala and cerebellum.
Sleep apnea is associated with a significantly increased risk of dementia, particularly for Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease, but not for vascular dementia.
If you are using CPAP, it will take some time before you notice the positive effects of the treatment. Averagely, the effects will start showing around three months, and full recovery can be up to a year. Sleep apnea should be dealt with as soon as possible.
The repeated cessations in breathing and ongoing sleep deprivation take their toll on the person's brain and can lead to personality changes, behavior changes, stress disorders, memory loss, and similar complications.
Can sleep apnea cause long-term memory loss? It can. Symptoms don't go away for 10% to 15% of people treated for sleep apnea. They have some type of long-term permanent symptoms.
EPAP therapy is newer and it is less commonly prescribed than the other PAP therapies. However, a review of EPAP studies found that people using EPAP experience a 53% reduction. View Source in OSA symptoms. Some researchers recommend using EPAP for people with mild to moderate OSA.
Sleep apnea without treatment does not directly shorten life expectancy. However, it does increase the likelihood that patients will develop life-threatening health conditions that result in shortened life expectancy.
In adults, the most common cause of obstructive sleep apnea is excess weight and obesity, which is associated with the soft tissue of the mouth and throat. During sleep, when throat and tongue muscles are more relaxed, this soft tissue can cause the airway to become blocked.
The prevalence of sleep apnoea increases with age, although the severity of the disorder, as well as the morbidity and mortality associated with it, may actually decrease in the elderly. A decline in cognitive functioning in older adults with sleep apnoea may resemble dementia.
Sleep apnea affects anyone, including children. Therefore even the healthiest and skinny people can experience sleep apnea. In addition, thin people are less likely to seek a diagnosis for the condition from the dentist in Evergreen Park, IL, thinking sleep apnea merely affects the overweight.
More than usual daytime sleepiness. Waking up with a dry throat or headache. Waking up often during the night. Difficulty concentrating or mood changes during the day.
The more severe the obstructive sleep apnea, the greater the risk of coronary artery disease, heart attacks, heart failure and strokes. Obstructive sleep apnea increases the risk of abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias), which can lower blood pressure.
The life expectancy of a CPAP machine differs based on the specific piece of equipment. In general, CPAP machines are used for roughly three to five years. CPAP masks, however, should be replaced several times per year.