Sleep apnea, the loud and irregular nighttime breathing that can rattle the windows, is known to be dangerous for people with heart disease, high blood pressure and other medical problems. But are otherwise healthy individuals harmed by sleep apnea?
That's a roof-shaking yes, according to research presented at a recent National Institutes of Health conference on mind-body connections, sponsored by the MacArthur Foundation.
Mayo Clinic physician and researcher Virend K. Somers studied healthy adults who had sleep apnea but were free of heart disease and such other medical conditions as diabetes and high blood pressure. During their sleep apnea attacks, Somers and his team found that blood pressure skyrocketed to 240/120 milligrams of mercury. (Normal blood pressure is 120/80). Other striking changes included constriction of blood vessels and significant alterations in nervous-system activity that controls adrenaline production.
Sleep apnea also produced daytime changes in these healthy adults, Somers reported, including abnormalities in the way the brain regulates the cardiovascular system.
What the findings suggest is that "sleep apnea is an independent cause of cardiovascular disease," Somers said.
The results also underscore the importance of early diagnosis and treatment before more serious complications develop. "We believe with treatment that we can delay or avert cardiovascular effects," Somers said.
An estimated 15 million Americans suffer from sleep apnea; about 90 percent of them are overweight. Treatment includes losing weight and wearing a nighttime device called a continuous positive airway pressure, which keeps air moving into the lungs during attacks when the airway collapses and leaves the sufferer gasping for breath. The device also helps avert blood pressure rises and other complications. The bad news: about 40 percent of users find they can't sleep well with the device, Somers said.