Effects of Sleep Apnea
There are numerous long-term consequences of untreated sleep apnea, including the following issues:
Cardiovascular:
- high blood pressure (hypertension)
- heart attacks (myocardial infarction or MI)
- angina (chronic chest pain)
- atrial fibrillation ("a fib")
- cor pulmonale (right heart failure)
- stroke (cerebrovascular event or CVA)
- TIA ("mini-stroke")
- congestive heart failure (CHF)
- increased risk of sudden death
Neurological (Brain):
- migraine
- cluster headaches
- chronic daily headache
- increased seizure frequency for those with epilepsy
- pseudotumor cerebri (idiopathic intracranial hypertension - "IIH")
- memory disorders
Pulmonary:
- pulmonary hypertension
- asthma
Metabolic:
- Type 2 diabetes
- insulin resistance
- hypothyroidism
- metabolic syndrome
- high cholesterol (dyslipidemia or hyperlipidemia)
- nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
Urological:
- erectile dysfunction (ED)
- nocturia (excessive nighttime urination)
Ophthalmologic (Eye):
- floppy eyelid syndrome
- glaucoma
- conjunctivitis
Psychiatric/Psychological:
- depression
- mood disturbance
- ADHD
- insomnia
Pregnancy-related:
- preeclampsia
Surgical/Procedural:
- increased risk of perioperative complications
Other Sleep Disorders:
- confusional arousals
- sleepwalking
- sleep terrors
- pseudo-REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD)
- sleep related eating disorder
- OSA-induced nocturnal seizures
- cerebral anoxic attacks with motor activity
