Hyper Tension Revealed

Sleep Apnea and Hypertension

The link between sleep apnea and hypertension has been firmly established. Recent medical research has suggested that a percentage of forty to sixty percent of patients with sleep apnea have hypertension.

Sleep Apnea

Sleep apnea is defined as a complete or partial obstruction of the airway leading to periods of not breathing during sleep. Symptoms of sleep apnea are excessive daytime sleepiness, loud snoring, and lack of quality sleep. Family members may visually see a person having sleep apnea. Often this is noted as the person seeming to be startled or suddenly awaking from sleep for no apparent reason.

Hypertension

Hypertension is the medical terminology for high blood pressure. Blood pressure is the force of the blood that is pushing against the walls of the blood vessels. Often there are no detectable symptoms of high blood pressure. An abnormally high blood pressure reading by a doctor is often the first indication of a problem. The effects of high blood pressure are quite serious.

Resulting Medical Conditions

The link between sleep apnea and hypertension can lead to fatal medical conditions such as heart attack, stroke, and aortic aneurysms. The chronic toll on the body can lead to arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), and kidney failure. It also can have effects such as confusion, headache and problems with the eyesight, which could possible lead to partial or complete blindness. There are usually no early warning signs of theses diseases except for medical conditions such as the link between sleep apnea and hypertension.

Obesity Link

Sleep apnea and hypertension are shown to be highly related to obesity. Almost all sleep apnea patients also diagnosed as being obese. Often a doctor who diagnoses obesity will order an array of screening tests for both apnea and hypertension. Obesity is considered as a person having 30 or more pounds of extra weight. Extra fat deposits around the throat and esophagus are often present and surgery to remove them are some times needed. Currently approximately fifteen million Americans are considered to be suffering from sleep apnea. With the rise in American obesity being considered these numbers are expected to increase. Sleep apnea and hypertension are now being diagnosed even in the teen years at an alarming rate.

Treatment

There are current treatment options for those with sleep apnea and hypertension. A device called a c-pap machine is widely available from home medical supply companies. It works by using a positive airflow to keep the airway open allowing the patient to sleep and breathe comfortably. It also uses water to humidify the airway causing less irritation and swelling consequently lowering episodes of sleep apnea. Is also been shown that by slightly elevating the patient’s sleeping surface at night; sleep apnea and hypertension can be reduced. By working with a doctor and dietician, many patients can lose undesirable weight and lower salt intake, which is proven to help with both sleep apnea and hypertension.

Outcomes

In many follow up studies, patients who controlled their sleep apnea successfully improved both daytime and nighttime blood pressures. When all current data is taken into consideration it is reasonable to assume that sleep apnea is a major contributing factor in the development of high blood pressure. Therefore, controlling sleep apnea can make a significant impact on controlling arterial hypertension.