The Various Dangers Of Sleep Apnea
Sleep and oxygen deprivation are the immediate consequences of sleep apnea. If a patient of the medical condition is left untreated, these two consequences can then later lead to many dangers of sleep apnea. The consequences of sleep deprivation and those of oxygen deprivation are separately described below.
Effects of sleep deprivation: Sleep apnea prevents a patient from reaching the stage of deep sleep such as rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and slow wave sleep (SWS). It affects spatial perception and reasoning in a patient of the condition. These cognitive processes are also affected by alcohol consumption.
Sleep deprivation can lead first to a headache, excessive day time sleepiness, and then to dangerous consequences such as fatal work-related and automobile accidents and disasters similar to the Challenger Space Shuttle explosion.
Sleep deprivation can cause an apnea patient to become irritable. The patient's reactions may slow down. Poor emotional and mental health, a weakened immune system, and mental confusion are other impacts of sleep deprivation that have been observed in sleep apnea patients. Continuous sleep disruption and sleep deprivation may result in depression in an untreated severe sleep apnea patient. Obesity in sleep apnea patients accelerates the dangers of type 2 diabetes inherent in sleep apnea. On the other hand, weight gain due to obesity in a person causes increased susceptibility towards obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). This obesity can cause the proliferation of fat in an apnea patient's body. In turn this excess fat can cause liver damage due to sleep apnea in an untreated apnea patient. Effects of oxygen deprivation: This deprivation is the major cause of the many health-related dangers that follow as a result of timely treatment not being administered to a sleep apnea patient. This is because a continuous supply of oxygen is vital for the survival of the human body. Since a patient of sleep apnea may undergo hundreds of apnea hypopnea events each night, the body tissues literally starve for air. The effect depends on the severity of sleep apnea and the value of the apnea hypopnea index (AHI). Severe apnea results when the value is in the high range of 20 to 30. The initial negative effects of oxygen deprivation in an untreated patient affected by severe sleep apnea include hypertension, sexual dysfunction, memory loss, and learning related difficulties. At a more advanced stage, with still no treatment administered, a tendency towards stroke and heart disease are the biggest dangerous consequences. These two may even lead to the death of a sleep apnea patient. Statistics show that most untreated sleep apnea patients die of myocardial infarction. Heart disease is the next biggest factor that causes the death of untreated sleep apnea patients. Cancer, COPD, and diabetes are the next biggest factors in sequence that cause the death of untreated sleep apnea patients. Patients, who are aware of the various dangers of sleep apnea, can use continuous positive air pressure (CPAP) therapy to prevent episodes of sleep apnea.
Sleep Apnea
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