| Many sleep apnea sufferers are also at risk of having | | | | As a result of these findings researchers conducted |
| a stroke but recent research shows that treating | | | | tests on some 50 men suffering from moderate to |
| moderate to severe sleep apnea can significantly | | | | severe obstructive sleep apnea and noted that some |
| reduce stoke risk. | | | | 25 percent of the test group demonstrated evidence |
| It is well known that sleep apnea sufferers are also at | | | | of silent brain infarctions. This compares to a figure of |
| risk from a number of other health problems and one | | | | around 8 percent in people suffering from only mild |
| of these is the risk of having a stroke. It is now | | | | obstructive sleep apnea. |
| becoming clear however that treating sleep apnea can | | | | The same researchers then treated 24 men with |
| significantly lower stroke risk. | | | | moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea using |
| Many sleep apnea sufferers also suffer from lesions | | | | continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) delivered |
| caused by what are known as silent brain infarctions. | | | | nasally and found that in all cases the subjects |
| Also referred to as subclinical cerebrovascular disease, | | | | showed significantly reduced levels of the protein |
| silent brain infarction is the effective death of tissue | | | | markers associated with cardiovascular disease, |
| within the brain resulting from a poor blood supply. | | | | indicating a similarly significant reduction in the risk of |
| Normal clinical tests do not detect the presence of this | | | | cerebrovascular disease and thus of stroke. |
| condition (hence the term 'subclinical') which will | | | | In many cases the treatment of one particular |
| however show up on a magnetic resonance imaging | | | | condition can not only improve that condition, but can |
| (MRI) brain scan. The presence of silent brain | | | | also have a knock-on affect. This is clearly the case |
| infarctions is often seen as a precursor to a stroke. | | | | with moderate to severe sleep apnea and the |
| In addition, many sleep apnea sufferers also show | | | | administration of simple CPAP treatment can not only |
| increased levels of several inflammatory markers | | | | considerably improve the sufferer quality of sleep, but |
| which are associated with coronary artery disease | | | | also significantly reduce the sufferer's risk of having a |
| and these in turn are indicative of a heightened risk of | | | | stroke. |
| silent brain infarction. | | | | |