In this space, on the Lung Doctors blog,  we have discussed a plethora of topics concerning problems with lung diseases. It occurred to us that you might be surprised to see that our specialists deal with Sleep Disorders, because we have not published many blog articles on that topic.

Just a few months ago Florida Lung, Asthma and Sleep Disorder Specialists opened a new, state of the art Sleep Center for the diagnosis and treatment of Sleep Disorders. We suggest you click on our previous article by way of preliminary introduction to today’s topic.

Today, we bring you a blog article about the relationship between a classic lung disease, asthma, and a sleep disorder known as sleep apnea. Together they form a vicious circle of symptoms and discomfort for the patient.

First of all, by definition, “Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, or simply sleep apnea, is a disease process caused by repeated episodes of closing of the upper airway during sleep.”

Secondly, asthma “is more recognizable by many since it is largely hereditary and easily diagnosed.”

You might think these are two completely different problems, but the truth is, they are correlated. “According to the University of Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, young women who have asthma are twice likely to develop sleep apnea.)

This problem, typically exhibited by gasping, choking, snoring sounds, and sleep interruptions often causes:

  • 1. A reduction of airflow and oxygen to the your precious lungs.
  • 2. This happens many times in the night, and can eventually cause low oxygen levels in the blood stream.
  • 3. As a patient, you often have wake-ups that disrupt your sleep. To put it simply, and sympathetically, it is no wonder that you can not feel rested or refreshed in the morning! Your organs, which should be resting, have to work harder to maintain comforting oxygen.

Now, let’s take a look at what happens when you add asthma problems to this apnea syndrome:

Recent research explains that people asthmatic patients both possess a high risk for sleep apnea, and in return, sleep apnea can intensify asthma.

1. Sleep apnea aggravates asthma by increasing gastro-esophageal reflux.

2. With such acid reflux, you are subject to gaining weight, even obesityandescalating the apnea.

3. In turn, the decreased airflow in the airways of the lungs can cause “increased inflammation throughout the body (including the lungs).”

4. The vicious circle means that sleep apnea worsens acid reflux, and “decreases the ability of sphincter muscles in the esophagus to keep acid in your stomach.” Acid reflux during sleep is a well recognized trigger for night-time asthma onset .

5. In turn, studies have proven that your sleep apnea can increase the inflammatory chemicals in the bloodstream. This has the possibility of increasing the inflammation of the lungs which may already be inflamed from the asthma. (Read more detailed medical descriptions at this highly authoritative source.)

The cycle adds up to what we have termed in this blog, a crazy carousel of symptoms that keep the patient in a constant state of fatigue and breathing difficulties. Fortunately, we have many medication regimes for the treatment and control of asthma. The good news is that today, Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) is the most successful therapy for obstructive sleep apnea.

You will simply wear a special mask during sleep, and it will bring you healthy restful sleep. It does this by providing you a with a “continuous stream of pressurized air to keep the airways open.”

If you are curious about the machine and its use, visit this site for a short description. We know that at first blush, this sounds uncomfortable and strange, but our sleep technicians will  teach you about your CPAP machine, and soon you will be experiencing sweet dreams instead of acid reflux, frequent wake-ups, and asthma exacerbations.

If you are having breathing difficulties at night, or “riding” the crazy carousel of asthma and sleep apnea, then you should feel free to call us for a special consultation. With your asthma controlled, and your sleep cycle restored, we are confident that you will experience a new level of quality in your life.