Sleep Apnea???

[domandcamismom]

My father was never officially diagnosed with sleep apnea, however, my mom used to wake him up a number of times at night because he was not breathing.  In June of 2008 my father passed away very unexpectidly in his sleep.  I was pregnant at the time so no one would really give me any information on how he passed.  They assumed it was the sleep apnea but I never found out for sure if that is what it was.  When they did a simple autopsy would they have been able to figure out if sleep apnea was the cause or not?  Is there any way by just looking at him that we could tell if this was the cause?

[domandcamismom]

Thank you both so much for all of the information.  I really wish there were a way for me to know what the cause was, but I don't think I will ever know for sure.  

Resilient_Mimi, thank you so much for the kind words and prayer!!!

[Resilient_Mimi]

I'm not sure. I am a RT and I know that it can really put a strain on your heart and all other major organs when you have sleep apnea. Some people have central sleep apnea(which has to be determined while alseep hooked up to EEG leads) and this is were the brain doesnt tell the person to take a breath. So it is something I have heard of many times.  Answers are so hard to get when you need them the most, I'm so sorry for your loss. I have noticed in my time of healing and suffering a prayer to the good LORD above is all we need to give us peace. I pray that you can have this peace, in Jesus name amen.

[KatEyes]

In view of the importance of family medical history, it can be unsettling to not know for certain a cause of death of a family member. My father's sleep was much like you describe, but it was back before sleep apnea was even on the radar. Sometimes longstanding sleep apnea can cause changes to the heart that might be evident on autopsy, but is not always the case. Sleep apnea does increase risk of a cardiac event or a stroke when the oxygen levels drop in the blood due to lack of air intake for which the heart tries to compensate. Big stress on the body. I would think an autopsy in this case would more likely pinpoint if there was a stroke or a heart attack, but not be able to unequivocally attribute the crisis to sleep apnea. The question for those of us with parents with obstructive sleep apnea is whether it is genetic, as in a familial tendency toward a jaw or throat structure that tends to narrowing of the airway. In our family, both of my brothers and I must have taken after Dad - small mouths and not strong jawlines, and weight is not a issue. You may not get an answer regarding your father, just be aware of how it may or may not relate to you.