"please keep me updated about oximeters "
Sleep Apnea Forum Bringing Power to the Patient
New? Free Sign Up
Then check our Welcome Center to a Community Caring about Sleep Apnea diagnosis and Sleep Apnea treatment:
CPAP machines, Sleep Apnea surgery and dental appliances.
CPAP Supplies
Latest Activity
Can one die from not wearing their CPAP mask? If so, from what exactly?
I saw a article title some where that someone died from sleep apnea but, unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to read the article. I am very interested to know exactly how one would die and from what. I am not talking about longterm debilitation from lack of sleep or anything like that I am talking about how someone would go quickly and surprisingly.
Views: 5600
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Judy on
-
Heart attack. Stroke.
Was the article about the 26 year old man who died during a sleep study at Emory in Atlanta, GA? No cause of death has been given yet, but he is reported to have had multiple health conditons and was quite "heavy set".
Reggie White, the well known football player, died from heart attack or stroke (I forget which) when he wasn't using his CPAP and his wife has started the Reggie White Sleep Disorders Foundation.
-
Permalink Reply by Carol Hansen-Dix on
-
Thank you so much for the thoughtful and thorough response. I will really take this to heart.
j n k said:"People with obstructive sleep apnea have a peak in sudden death from cardiac causes during the sleeping hours. . . At night, people with untreated obstructive sleep apnea have too little oxygen and too much carbon dioxide in their blood. Their nervous systems are jumpy, their blood pressure surges, the walls of their hearts are stressed, and their heart rhythm is disturbed. Their blood clots easily and carries too many damaging free-radical compounds."
http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/sleep-apnea/news/20050323/slee...
"ScienceDaily (Jan. 12, 2009) — Obstructive sleep apnea decreases blood flow to the brain, elevates blood pressure within the brain and eventually harms the brain’s ability to modulate these changes and prevent damage to itself, according to a new study published by The American Physiological Society. The findings may help explain why people with sleep apnea are more likely to suffer strokes and to die in their sleep."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090106100009.htm
The most common cause of sudden, surprising death from untreated sleep apnea, though, is death from falling asleep at the wheel. Those sadly often take innocent victims with them.
Sleep is important. Breathing is important. Lack of either one, and especially both, can kill you many, many different ways, suddenly or slowly. It is treatable. So it should be treated.
-
-
Thank you Judy for your informative responses to my questions. I am somewhat new to this and will, now, take it a lot more serious.
Judy said:Heart attack. Stroke.
Was the article about the 26 year old man who died during a sleep study at Emory in Atlanta, GA? No cause of death has been given yet, but he is reported to have had multiple health conditons and was quite "heavy set".
Reggie White, the well known football player, died from heart attack or stroke (I forget which) when he wasn't using his CPAP and his wife has started the Reggie White Sleep Disorders Foundation.
-
-
Also it can contribute to high blood pressure, if you have this your statistics for heart attack and stroke are higher...
-
Permalink Reply by RockRpsgt on
-
It will make you get up to pee alot as well. Just thought I would throw that in since the rest of you hit the hot topics.
Great post jnk with a nice follow up from Judy. Well done.
-
Permalink Reply by 99 on
-
now fitted as standard in an anti asphixiation valve in the tube near the mask
this is a simple device to let you breath should the electricity fail
however you can block this inadvertantly (with great difficalty) with the blankets which should make no difference unless there is failure of a power supply
-
Permalink Reply by Victoria Castro on
-
My boyfriend's cousin passed away from Obstructive Sleep Apnea. That was a wake up call for me to get checked out because at the time I was very exhausted from the time I woke up until the time I went to bed. I also snored my boyfriend out of bed a few times before getting checked out. Today, I'm currently using cpap therapy and I still have excessive daytime sleepiness. I depend on Provigil to get me through my day at work. I'm usually sitting idle at my desk and that's when I usually get the urge to fall asleep. I have a follow up appointment with my doctor next week. Lately, I have been feeling very sleepy; I think I might need to bump up my medication or try to get more sleep.
-
Permalink Reply by Marcy on
-
On a recent visit to my family doctor, we discussed my apnea. My doctor stated that he had a good friend who died in his sleep from apnea. So, I believe it is possible. I often wonder if the fellow who sells things on television, who recently died, (I can't think of his name) died from undiagnosed sleep apnea. He did die in his sleep. His wife noticed he had stopped snoring and she woke up to find him dead. I wonder if doctors or medical professionals ever think of apnea as a reason for death. You hear of people dying all the time from heart attack and stroke while they are sleeping. Do they ever factor in the possibility that the deceased person may have had undiagnosed sleep apnea?
-
-
It depends on how badly your oxygen levels drop without the CPAP or BiPap, and the causes of your sleep apnea. In my case, I have both Central (neurological) and Obstructive (but not the usual cause) sleep apneas, and without a mask or nasal pillows, my oxygen levels (my first sleep study, before CPAP) dropped to my 70s. That can cause a stroke or heart attack (I don't know about cardiac arrest). I had to be switched from CPAP to more expensive, complicated BiPap SV machine (only two on the market - one in each of two brands) due to the Central sleep apnea last summer.
So, it depends. In my view, if you have sleep apnea, it is safest to wear it every night, all night and not take chances. That's what the equipment is for (and insurance is for). There are so many kinds of full masks, nasal masks, nasal pillows, etc., and strap cushions (an out of pocket expense, or you can make them), etc. there is no reason to be uncomfortable.
The BiPap took months of getting used to, unlike a CPAP machine. It ramps up and down, analyzes each breath (so it varies, so noise level varies), and ramps up a lot further than a CPAP machine. But I finally got used to it. And I intend to live a long time.
Vicki in Homewood, IL
-
Permalink Reply by assholes showing my profile when on
-
Here is some food for thought. Ok sleep apnea is said to be correlated with heart disease. I saw many responses with a buzz word, Insufficient O2 in the blood. We can only hold our breaths for so long until the bodies need for homeostasis kicks in and the internal mechanisms including the hypothalmus say, HEY! breathe. Just like a child who wants to hold thier breath. So what! They'll pass out and return to normal breathing because thats what the internal body says it needs to do to survive. Question for thought: Well why don't swimmers die suddenly? Swimmers constantly hold their breath for periods of time longer than those with sleep apnea. Will those periods of O2 depletion lead to heart failure??? or other internal medical issues?
Is this not a hole blown in the theory? Any comments on the correlation?
-
-
As Executive Director of the Reggie White Sleep Disorders Foundation, I can confirm what Judy pointed out. Reggie did, indeed, die from a massive heart attack caused by a devastating episode of apnea.
Judy said:Heart attack. Stroke.
Was the article about the 26 year old man who died during a sleep study at Emory in Atlanta, GA? No cause of death has been given yet, but he is reported to have had multiple health conditons and was quite "heavy set".
Reggie White, the well known football player, died from heart attack or stroke (I forget which) when he wasn't using his CPAP and his wife has started the Reggie White Sleep Disorders Foundation.
-
Permalink Reply by sleepycarol on
-
Swimmers usually train for meets. They are awake and alert while holding their breath. Swimmers that can hold their breath for long periods typically are healthy and do not have serious health issues.
Your example hold no water since one is being conditioned to hold their breath (swimmers) and those with apnea not breathing while in an unconscious state.
I know for myself I can not dunk, even mometarily, underwater as I panic. So I know what my body has to go through when I am not breathing it is in the "fight or flight" mode which is good on you heart and other organs.
© 2025 Created by The SleepGuide Crew.
Powered by
