Snoring can cause damage to your arteries. In other sections it was discussed that children can have “benign primary snoring” and that the lymphoid tissue (tonsils and adenoids) may reduce in size as the airway matures, and the snoring may go away. Not so true in adults. Snoring is a vibration of the soft tissues… Read more »
Sleep apnea is associated with heart disease. There are many contributing mechanisms. For one, the increased effort periodically through the night to take breaths from obstruction puts stress on the heart, leading to increased heart rate and blood pressure. Another is just the stress state, the inflammatory state that someone with sleep apnea is in can… Read more »
Sleep walking, sleep talking, and night terrors are common in childhood. They occur in a deep sleep. Different stages of sleep are reviewed in Sleep 101. Natural history of Non-REM Parasomnia (Somambulism, Somniloquy, Night Terror) It is more common in childhood when SWS (Slow-Wave Sleep) is more abundant. Safety/Environmental measures is first line treatment. At… Read more »
Sleepiness and obesity. Daytime Sleepiness is More Common in Obesity Many obese individuals presenting with hypersomnolence will be diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea and their sleepiness will improve with effective therapy for sleep apnea. However a significant proportion of patients will continue to have hypersomnolence. Clinical studies demonstrate that obesity without sleep apnea is also… Read more »
Many patients with sleep apnea complain of insomnia. Sometimes it can be because the snoring causes a disruption of sleep, leads to more awakenings. Other times it could be because people with sleep apnea are sleepy. Generally people don’t complain of poor sleep unless they are sleepy. In my practice I have had many people… Read more »
