Many people don’t get the sleep they need due to too much caffeine in their system, insomnia, restless leg syndrome and many other reasons, but there’s one sleep related disorder that could be a great hazard to your health.

Sleep apnea.

It affects 24 percent of men and only 9 percent of women, about 12 million to 20 million Americans.

Sleep apnea is a condition that affects a person’s breathing during sleep due to soft tissue blocking off the airway.

And even though this chronic disorder isn’t age specific, it does become more common as men age and after a woman goes through menopause.

A new study, set to be published in the Nov. 3 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, says the characteristic snorting and gasping for breath related to sleep apnea can spur fatal heartbeat abnormalities like arrhythmia. The research included nearly 3,000 patients.

And while the study did solidify this connection, the percentage of sleep apnea patients that develop this type of problem is extremely rare — about one in 40,000.

“It’s certainly been a concern for a long time because of concerns with sudden death and what happens at night,” said Dr. Andrew Doolittle, an ENT with Mid-Carolinas Surgical Associates, a member of the Richmond Memorial Hospital medical staff.

There are several kinds of sleep apnea, but Doolittle said obstructive sleep apnea is the most common. Estimates are that 50 percent of those who suffer from sleep apnea also have a snoring problem.

And it’s that snoring problem that got Ralph (Bopper) Lill to visit Doolittle about his sleeping habits.

“I’ve had sleep apnea for four years,” Lill said. “I hadn’t been getting comfortable, wasn’t resting well, waking up two, three, four times a night.”

But since undergoing a sleep study and being diagnosed with sleep apnea, Lill has been wearing a CPAP mask to help him sleep at night. CPAP stands for Continuous Positive Airway Pressure and Doolittle said it’s considered the gold standard of treatment for sleep apnea patients.

The mask, which can be a full face mask that covers the nose and mouth, or just the nose, has to be worn during sleep. It acts as a stint, keeping the airway open, without any physical object in there. There are other treatments for patients who can’t tolerate the CPAP like mouth guards and sometimes surgery.

Since wearing his CPAP, Lill said he no longer needs naps during the day and his quality of sleep is excellent.

“The difference is like night and day,” said Johnny Benoist, another of Doolittle’s patients who’s been wearing his CPAP for about three months. “I used to have to take one to two hour naps in the middle of the day to feel good. I started using it the first night I got it.”

Both men said the mask is easy to get used to, and for the quality of sleep they get, any mild discomfort when first getting used to the mask is well worth it, they said.

Doolittle said 60 percent to 80 percent of all sleep apnea patients respond positively to the CPAP and see results.

He said the most common signs to look for regarding sleep apnea include snoring, not being able to stay awake, falling asleep when you wouldn’t normally, despite having adequate sleep, and a bed partner noticing your gasps for breath during the night.

Snoring alone does not mean you have sleep apnea, Doolittle said.

He said fatigue is the most common symptom among all of his patients and that once diagnosed, sleep apnea can be effectively treated, though it is under diagnosed and under-treated..

“There’s some, but not conclusive, evidence that (treatment) may reduce cardiovascular disease,” Doolittle said. “Like other conditions such as hypertension and diabetes, there’s also a link between obesity and sleep apnea.”

“The biggest thing anyone has control over is weight,” he continued. “If a patient has a significant amount of weight to lose they can improve their sleep apnea, but if it’s bad anatomy, weight loss won’t change the apnea but could help lessen the severity. But if someone has mild apnea, it could be cured by weight loss alone.”

Extra weight is terrible for sleep apnea sufferers because it just adds more bulk to the same small area making it more difficult to breathe by increasing the amount of obstruction to the airway.

But some patients also have cranial facial conditions, such a retrusive chin (small chin) which may make them predisposed to develop sleep apnea, but that can’t be controlled.

Part of Lill’s problem was his weight, but he’s lost 50 pounds since January and says he still has more to lose.

Benoist’s was likely related to age and a predisposition because of the retrusive chin and other factors.

Doolittle said in some cases, large tonsils can also be a part of the problem, but surgery is effective for that in younger patients.

Both Benoist and Lill suggest anyone having symptoms like trouble breathing, snoring, etc., visit the doctor because it’s worth treating.

Doolittle said a patient is typically diagnosed with sleep apnea by conducting an in-hospital sleep study. Following that, if the patient has sleep apnea, there will be a couple initial follow-up visits to see how treatment is working and if there are any problems. But once the sleep apnea is being treated effectively, only yearly follow-ups are necessary. Every five years patients will be reevaluated to see if their treatment is still on track.

“We’re treating the apnea,” Doolittle said. “We’re not curing it. It is a chronic illness.”

But the treatment has been a lifesaver for Benoist who says he now sleeps on average eight to nine hours a night.

“When I first got the machine my wife came to check if I was all right because I was sleeping so peacefully,” Benoist said. “When I get ready to go to the beach, it’s the first thing I pack.”

n Staff writer Eren Tataragasi can be reached at (910)997-3111 or at etataragasi@yourdailyjournal.com.