RobinN
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Hi Robin,
That's interesting, I'm a 17 neck.
Randy
Have you ever had a sleep apnea test, Randy?
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Hi Robin,
That's interesting, I'm a 17 neck.
Randy
Sleep apnea and hypothyroidism are distinctly different conditions. Uncontrolled hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) will aggravate and in some cases set the stage for sleep apnea by weight gain and its related obstruction of the upper airway.
Sleep apnea has no effect on hypothyroidism itself, but is a common associated condition as you have noticed. The failure to recognize both of these conditions will have major effects on your quality of life and longevity. Correction of hypothyroidism may give a measure of control, improvement or remission of sleep apnea.
Australian doctors have found a new link between epilepsy and obstructive sleep apnoea, a condition where patients stop breathing at night.
Professor Terry O'Brien from the Royal Melbourne Hospital says there has been some evidence from other studies that patients with epilepsy may have an increased incidence of sleep-disordered breathing.
Professor O'Brien says there are similar symptoms of daytime sleepiness and fatigue between the two conditions.
He says patients with epilepsy can gain weight as a result of their medications, something that increases their risk of sleep-disordered breathing.
"We put two and two together and thought we should look into this," he said.
Doctors recruited 87 patients with epilepsy and monitored them in a sleep unit.
They found 25 per cent had significant sleep-disordered breathing that was severe enough to require treatment.
In the general population, the prevalence of sleep-disordered breathing is 3 to 7 per cent.
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