A new study evaluated nocturia as a predictor of obstructive sleep apnea.
The study involved 1,007 adults. All of them had sought help at a sleep disorders center.
They completed medical and sleep history questionnaires. Their sleep was evaluated during an overnight sleep study.
HealthDay reports that 797 were diagnosed with sleep apnea. Snoring was reported by 777 people, and 839 reported nocturia.
Results show that self-reported nocturia was as effective as snoring at predicting OSA. The authors suggested that doctors should ask about nocturia when screening for sleep apnea.
"I see patients all the time who think they're waking up to urinate because they have prostate trouble or a small bladder," study co-author Dr. Barry Krakow told HealthDay. "About 80 percent of the time we discover that apnea is the cause of their problem."
Nocturia involves excessive urination at night. You may wake up several times during the night to urinate.
Sleep apnea causes frequent awakenings from sleep. Often these awakenings may be attributed incorrectly to excessive urination.
One study involved 80 people who woke up to urinate while being evaluated for a suspected sleep disorder. They were asked why they believed they had awakened.
Participants woke up and urinated 121 times. Sleep study results showed that 79 percent of these awakenings were caused by OSA, snoring or periodic limb movements.
But patients correctly identified the cause of only five percent of the awakenings. The authors concluded that people are poor judges of the reasons why they wake from sleep.
Research also shows that CPAP therapy for sleep apnea reduces awakenings to urinate.
Are you at risk for sleep apnea? STOP and find out. You also can answer these questions on SleepEducation.com to learn more about your risk.
Get help for sleep apnea at an AASM-accredited sleep center near you.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
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The American Sleep Foundation reports that sleep deprivation, not cancer or coronary illness, now constitutes the number 1 killer in the Western World. It is estimated that 1/3 of the population suffer from insomnia during their lives while another 1/3 are dangerously sleep deprived. Experts
claim that sleepiness is “the smoking gun of the modern age” and fear that unless we radically shift our attitudes towards sleep we are heading towards a medical meltdown.
In DEAD TIRED a 2 hour mini-series, new medical studies will reveal what many scientists have long believed - that sleep deprivation can trigger and exacerbate many diseases including heart disease, obesity, diabetes and even depression.
This 2-part documentary will be the first to reveal the cutting edge science behind why most of us are sleep deprived and the dramatic effect that it is having on both our bodies and our lives. The documentary highlights the frightening reality that tiredness is now an unsuspecting killer that is
spreading like a pandemic through today’s 24/7 activity-driven society.
Episode 1 - Awake is the New Sleep
This episode investigates how sleep deprivation causes sickness and death in today’s society. The documentary examines the cutting edge science that proves tiredness impairs performance, affects our mind and damages the body. The episode follows a unique scientific experiment where we observe in real time what happens to a healthy 25-year old when he cuts back his sleep from 8 to 3 hours a night for one week. We witness how the subject becomes psychotic, dreams whilst awake and drives a car while fast asleep!
Episode 2 - Planet Insomnia
This episode investigates the causes, consequences and cures for insomnia which is now the world’s most common medical disorder. The second episode features 4 personal stories of people suffering from insomnia which includes an Australian woman who cured her insomnia with yoga, and an American sleep doctor who attempts to cure the insomnia of a depressed suicidal teenager. The episode also shows how an innovative American trucking company cured the sleep problems of its 675 drivers and the amazing story of how an Australian woman broke into her exboyfriends
house and acted bizarrely after taking a sleeping pill.
Dead Tired was shot in Australia, America, Canada and England and follows the personal stories of those affected by insomnia or sleep deprivation, and the medical discoveries of professionals who are trying to cure them and others of this potentially fatal disorder.
Available through the filmmakers website: www.mindfulmedia.com.au
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