Can A Sleep Apnea Machine Combat Depression? Osa, Sleep And Happiness

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A recent study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows a correlation between the diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea and depression. Obstructive sleep apnea, often abbreviated as OSA, is a condition that causes interruptions or pauses in normal breathing while a person sleeps, occasionally manifesting as total cessation of breath for a few seconds, and even up to a full minute. These interruptions can be so severe as to cut off the sufferer’s oxygen supply not just to the brain, but the entire body. Daytime fatigue, irritability, high blood pressure to as severe as stroke are just a few of the consequences linked to endless nights of unfulfilling sleep. This condition is best combatted by use of a sleep apnea machine or CPAP machine, which requires a doctor’s diagnosis of OSA.

A lead author for the CDC study states that this interruption in sleep, while not always fully waking the patient, does bring that person out of the deeper levels of restful sleep necessary for recovery and rejuvenation. This is why OSA sufferers who aren’t on a regimen that includes the use of ...
... a CPAP or BiPAP machine suffer from exhaustion and listlessness throughout the day. This recent study included analysis of some 10,000 American adults. Researchers discovered a correlation between the likelihood of diagnosed depression in those participants that reported periods of gasping for breath and interruptions in breathing during sleep. Only approximately 6 percent of men and 3 percent of women that enrolled in this study reported having actually being diagnosed with OSA. There was a notable portion of participants that were not formally diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea, but did describe instances of gasping, snoring, unfulfilling sleep and fatigue during waking hours.

There is also a direct correlation between diagnoses of obstructive sleep apnea and obesity, especially in people over the age of 40 with larger than average neck size (the area around the throat is directly linked to instances of sleep apnea. The larger the area, the more stress put on the airway during sleep). While this study does add an important element the understanding of depression and its link to OSA, readers are cautioned to carefully consider the findings due to the self-reporting nature of the study.

Sleep Apnea Machines, CPAP Machines, & BiPap Machines

Treatment for obstructive sleep apnea can be as intricate as surgery to remove excess tissue from the affected area. More commonly and typically more effective is a prescribed regimen including the regular use of a sleep apnea machine. Sleep apnea machines better known as CPAP machine are still the most effective and widespread treatment for OSA. However, the availability of treatment doesn’t have a measureable effect on reducing the suffering that OSA patients endure if they don’t utilize it. There are estimates that approximately 80 percent of people who snore or suffer from interruptions in breathing five nights a week or more do not seek treatment, and therefore, go undiagnosed.

K. Leeds is a freelance writer for The CPAP Shop, one of the leading providers of sleep apnea machines, CPAP Machines and BiPap machines. Please visit The CPAP Shop website to learn more about CPAP Mask and products.