Sleep Apnea Could Be Fatal—Indirectly
Two new studies published in the August issue of the journal Sleep find that sleep apnea increases the risk of death from any cause, especially if untreated.
Adults with severe sleep apnea, or sleep-disordered breathing, are up to three times more likely to die prematurely from any cause, according to a Wisconsin study that analyzed 1,500 adults over an 18-year period. The study found that 19 percent of adults with a severe form of the condition died during follow-up, compared with only 4 percent of those who did not have the disease.
In another study, Australian researchers looked at data from an ongoing survey of 380 men and women and found that during a 14-year period, about 33 percent of the subjects who had moderate to severe sleep apnea died, compared with 6.5 percent who had a mild form of the disease, and 7.7 percent without the condition.
“Our findings … remove any reasonable doubt that sleep apnea is a fatal disease,” said Nathanial Marshall, a postdoctoral fellow at the Woolcock Institute of Medical Research in Sydney, in an American Academy of Sleep Medicine news release. “People who have, or suspect that they have, sleep apnea should consult their physicians about diagnosis and treatment options.”
Sleep apnea causes a person to suffer shallow or paused breathing for about 10–20 seconds for up to 20 or 30 times an hour, according to the National Library of Medicine. About 6 percent of American adults have a moderate to severe form of the condition, and 17 percent suffer from milder forms, according to WebMD.
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