The snoring associated with sleep apnea can induce changes in the oxygen concentration in the body, and the decrease in oxygen in the blood has repercussions on all organs and systems, the manager of the “Marius Nasta” Institute, Beatrice Mahler, told Agerpres on Wednesday.
Snoring can have serious effects on the bodyPhoto: Tommaso79 / Dreamstime.com
The doctor stated that when a person snores they should see a doctor for a sleep evaluation.
“Snoring is an alarm signal for the person who is informed by his partner or is told that he snores. We do not always know that we are snoring or it is very rare when we perceive these sounds and we know about ourselves that we produce this noise during sleep, but certainly then when it is present it is almost mandatory to end up in a doctor’s office who has to do a sleep evaluation. The sleep evaluation is important because snoring involves a change in the airflow in the throat. The air is blocked and the vibration it gives in the palatal veil produces this noise which is sometimes very disturbing. In addition to the fact that it is very disturbing for those around us, it induces changes in the concentration of oxygen in the body. The decrease in oxygen in the blood has repercussions on all organs and systems,” he explained Mahler.
From immune impairment to heart attack
According to the manager, the body of the person who has a decrease in oxygen as a result of the obstruction in the neck functions in a state of alarm, in a state of moderate hypoxemia sometimes, sometimes even severe.
“Very often in these patients we discover sleep apnea syndrome as a diagnosis of a snoring patient. Sleep apnea syndrome induces multiple changes. From the impairment of immunity, immunity that is affected not only by direct action on lymphocytes, being with mechanisms low defenses when the oxygen concentration in the blood decreases, but also systemic inflammatory changes, which in an obese person with already high cholesterol increases the risk of triggering cerebrovascular accidents, myocardial infarction, complications on the cardiovascular system which are extremely severe”, claimed Beatrice Mahler.
She said that for the assessment of people with sleep apnea, the doctor provides a holter monitor that indicates oxygen concentration, abdominal movements, chest movements, airflow from the airways and records snoring if it is present.
“For evaluation, the doctor usually provides a holter with which to evaluate sleep. This device evaluates the oxygen concentration, the movements of the abdomen, the movements of the chest, the air flow from the airways and registers snoring if it is present. Depending on the number of apneas which we record on an hourly basis, the patient receives supportive treatment, i.e. together with colleagues from the ENT area, we try to evaluate the nose area if there are severe obstructions, together with orthodontists to correct the dental changes that can interfere with normal breathing during the night, but it’s not always enough,” the doctor pointed out.
Beatrice Mahler said that in the case of an obese patient, weight loss is recommended.
“If the patient is obese, the weight loss that we recommend to patients is somewhat mandatory. Very often the need to support an open airway is present and this can be done with the help of a device that induces pressure in the airways so that during inhalation, as well as during exhalation, the airways remain open, and oxygen can enter and the noise associated with snoring can no longer be heard,” the doctor added.
Patients who suffer from sleep apnea and who are not treated feel permanent fatigue, headaches, some have high blood pressure values, and the consequences can be serious, such as myocardial infarction, stroke.
“If we talk about the patient who is not treated, he will feel a state of permanent fatigue, (…) basically the person who snores or who has sleep apnea is no longer able to rest, even if he sleeps 8-9 hours a night he will not have a restful sleep. He wakes up with a headache in the morning, he is much more agitated, much more unhappy, many patients have elevated blood pressure values that do not respond to treatment. Some develop heart rhythm disorders that are due to the decrease oxygen, but in no case do they think that it could be a problem related to ineffective and poor quality sleep during the night. Up to consequences that are extremely serious: myocardial infarction, stroke that practically affects the patient throughout his life later”, said the doctor.
Beatrice Mahler said that in the last year the number of people who turned to the pulmonologist because they don’t sleep well at night, snore and feel tired has increased.
“I can say that in the last year I have had more patients than in any other period so far who addressed the pulmonologist, who came to the doctor because they do not sleep well at night, because their partner tells them that they snore, because they feel tired. It’s a good thing, but there are still quite a few (number of patients who go to the doctor) compared to the large number of people who have these problems,” Mahler said.
According to her, patients with sleep apnea are at risk of road accidents, as poor-quality sleep can affect the ability to concentrate and reduce attention to the wheel.
“A very important risk is the risk of a road accident, because poor-quality sleep can affect the ability to concentrate and reduce attention to the wheel. Men are twice as likely to snore as women, so the sleep apnea syndrome is more frequent in men than in women in women, but it is very often linked to the presence of obesity, but it is not a mandatory condition”, the doctor also stated.
