Sleep Loss Leads to Medical Problems

• Published in: Valley news (West Lebanon, N.H.)
• Main Author: Schell, Thomas G
• Format: Newspaper Article
• Language: English
• Published: White River Junction, Vt Valley News 25.05.2009
• ISSN: 1072-6179

Statistics show that 57 percent of all people with high blood pressure also suffer from sleep apnea. It is suggested that sleep apnea is more prevalent than diabetes or asthma. Apneics are three times more likely to be in a motor vehicle accident involving serious injury and seven times more likely to be in multiple accidents. Apneics commonly suffer marital discord and other quality-of-life impairments. Many conditions seemingly unrelated to the sleep problem may benefit from treatment. Speak to a physician if you suffer from one or more of these: snoring with intermittent pauses, hypertension, personality changes and irritability, excessive daytime sleepiness, waking up with a gasp or choking sensation, excessive perspiration at night, poor memory and clouded intellect, depression or anxiety, morning headaches, dry mouth in the morning, heartburn, decreased sex drive and impotence, frequent trips to the bathroom at night, restless sleep, tossing and turning and rapid weight gain. Thomas Schell, DMD, is an adjunct assistant faculty member at Dartmouth Medical School and a staff member of Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. He sits on a CPAP Alternatives Case Conference Panel at the DHMC Sleep Clinic that discusses various different modalities to treat patients for whom traditional sleep apnea therapy is unsuccessful. Schell's memberships include the American Academies of Sleep Medicine and Dental Sleep Medicine, among others.