Dad stops breathing....

[Traci__0]

    
      Re: Dad stops breathing....
    


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Posted by CCF Neurology MD on September 13, 1997 at 00:31:06:

In Reply to: Dad stops breathing.... posted by Traci on September 04, 1997 at 23:43:12:

: My Dad has had several episodes where when he wakes up he can't inhale or exhale.  He says it is like his esophagus flips or something.  This have been happening more often and lately after an episode he will sometime start shaking.  He looks like he is shaking with Parkinson's but it stops after a few minutes.  He wasnt even aware that he was shaking.  He is also now having memory trouble.  He forgets lots of things....he is misspelling common words and writing down phone numbers with 9 digits.  But talking to him....he doesnt seem like anything is wrong.  He is aware of what he has done after he has done it.  He is also having trouble sleeping regularly.  Is there any connection between the loss of oxygen from the breathing and these other symptoms?  His breathing episodes last about 20-30 seconds.  Have you heard of anything like this?  His doctors are running tests and he is going to a sleep center next week but we have no answers yet on what we can do to help him.  Please help.
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Dear Traci:
Your father’s history is indeed quite concerning for the sleep apnea syndrome. The majority of cases have the obstructive type of sleep apnea, in which laxity of the pharynx or some other local cause results in intermittent airway obstruction during sleep. Apneic spells, defined as periods of cessation of breathing lasting 10 seconds or longer, occur with variable frequency during sleep. Patients ore often obese, and frequently snore, but neither of these is a constant finding. Often they wake up poorly rested, and with a headache. Excessive daytime drowsiness is the commonest important symptom of sleep apnea. A less frequent and less well recognised consequence is reversible cognitive deterioration. In the last decade or so, significant cardiac and vascular morbidity and mortality has been linked with sleep apnea, and some have even called it the “silent killer”. Also, in the last several years, several effective treatments have been developed for this common problem.
Thus, it is imperative that your father be worked up fully for the sleep symptoms.
While it is possible that the memory problems and spelling difficulties your father experiences are related to the sleep apnea syndrome, other explanations are possible, and probably more likely. I think that you father should also have a detailed simultaneous evaluation for the cognitive difficulty is an independent problem.
I hope this answers you question. In case your father lives near Cleveland and wants a second opinion, I recommend that he see a sleep specialist at the Cleveland Clinic. Drs. Dinner, Foldvary, Geller, and Kotagal, besides being very astute neurologists, are also renowned for their expertise in the speciality of sleep. We also have a busy state-of-the-art sleep lab.
I wish your father the best of luck.
This information is provided for general medical education purposes only. Please consult your physician for diagnostic and treatment options of your specific medical condition.