From research conducted at UCLA over the past 12 years, experts have learned that the gasping during the night that characterizes obstructive sleep apnea can damage the brain in ways that lead to high blood pressure, depression, memory loss and anxiety.

Does sleep apnea kill brain cells?

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.

Can sleep apnea cause neurological problems?

Recent papers showed the relationship between OSA and some neurological disorders, such as neurodegenerative diseases, stroke, epilepsy, and headache. OSA may accelerate the onset of mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimers disease (AD) and might also represent an independent risk factor for Parkinsons disease (PD).

What are the long term effects of sleep apnea?

Study: Stroke, cancer, and death – The Long-Term Risks of Sleep Apnea. Published in 2014 in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, researchers found that sleep apnea is independently associated with an increased risk of stroke, cancer, and death.

What part of the brain is damaged with sleep apnea?

By studying postmortem samples from people who had sleep apnea, Prof. Robinson and his colleagues recently discovered that the severity of the condition correlates with reductions in the volume of the hippocampus. This part of the brain, which is closely involved in memory, also atrophies in people with Alzheimers.

Can sleep apnea cause dementia like symptoms?

Sleep apnea is considered a risk factor for dementia. People with sleep apnea have been shown not only to have impaired memory and executive function, but also biomarker changes that are associated with Alzheimers disease.

Why do you see a neurologist for sleep apnea?

Neurology and Obstructive Sleep Apnea Research indicates that patients with some certain types of neurological conditions such as myasthenia gravis, Parkinsonism, and myotonic dystrophy have a higher chance of suffering from sleep apnea.

Can CPAP reverse brain damage?

Although three months of CPAP therapy produced only limited improvements to damaged brain structures, 12 months of CPAP therapy led to an almost complete reversal of white matter abnormalities. Treatment also produced significant improvements in nearly all cognitive tests, mood, alertness and quality of life.

Will sleep apnea shorten my life?

If left untreated, obstructive sleep apnea can shorten your life from anywhere between 12-15 years. While there is no permanent cure for obstructive sleep apnea, proper diagnosis and treatment is necessary to alleviate its effects and to ensure that your OSA wont shorten your life.

Why does sleep apnea cause dementia?

The study, published in the Journal of Alzheimers Disease, and led by Dr Melinda Jackson from the Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, found that severe OSA is linked to an increase in a protein, called beta-amyloid, that builds up on the walls of the arteries in the brain and increases the risk of dementia.

Do you see a neurologist for sleep apnea?

While you wont typically get referred to a neurologist if your primary care physician suspects obstructive sleep apnea is the cause of your sleep issues (such as excessive daytime sleepiness, morning headaches, etc., read more about symptoms here), youll probably get referred to a different specialist like a

How many apneas per hour is severe?

Obstructive sleep apnea is classified by severity: Severe obstructive sleep apnea means that your AHI is greater than 30 (more than 30 episodes per hour) Moderate obstructive sleep apnea means that your AHI is between 15 and 30. Mild obstructive sleep apnea means that your AHI is between 5 and 15.

Why is it hard to lose weight with sleep apnea?

Hormonal Changes If youre not getting restful sleep because your airway is blocked and you have disordered breathing with obstructive sleep apnea, your body is fighting against you. The hormonal imbalance that results from poor sleep makes weight loss nearly impossible.