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Mending broken sleep: Sleep apnea, the dangerous cessation of breathing during sleep, is being diagnosed more and more. A simple machine can bring refreshing relief
February 06, 2006
For more than two years, my snoring kept Laura awake most nights. It often got so loud that she used earplugs and buried her head under a pillow to escape the din. Nothing worked, and we were both exhausted. ... Now I no longer snore and we both sleep better. Each night for the last seven weeks, I have worn a breathing mask so air can be pumped through my nose and control my sleep apnea. I'm likely to wear it every night for the rest of my life. ... I am just one of a growing number of people diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea, a serious condition that saps work productivity, diminishes the pleasures of life, and can lead to heart disease and death. An Inquirer computer analysis found that the number of hospital patients diagnosed with sleep apnea nearly doubled in the area and across the nation between 1999 and 2003. Sleep doctors here say they are seeing a similar rise in office visits for the problem.
Our Review Summary
This is an engaging article that may help raise awareness of sleep apnea and the types of problems it may cause. The presentation of a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device as a non-surgical intervention that can be quite helpful is accurate, though a more balanced view would have included some discussion of the difficulties that many have in being able to use these devices to obtain the benefits mentioned in the story.
Click on Criteria for definitions.
Article does not mention that CPAP devices are FDA approved for the treatment of sleep apnea. However, it is clear that it is a readily available treatment.
The costs associated with CPAP technology are not presented. No discussion of costs of sleep lab evaluation. No discussion of insurance coverage for these approaches.
Estimate presented for >12 million afflicted with sleep apnea though most are undiagnosed.
Although health and quality of life claims are made, there is no mention of the type of evidence to support the anecdotal stories presented.
Early in the story, the CPAP machine is described as looking like Darth Vader on life support. This at least helps with a reasonable image of what the "simple" device looks like.
The story doesn't claim that this is a new treatment. Neither does it explain that it's been in use for a long time. The use of constant positive airway pressure (CPAP), a device used to treat obstructive sleep apnea is not new. Such devices, initially used with neonates, begun being used in this adult population in the 1980s.
Estimates of benefits are presented in general terms , e.g.,"I sleep better", and "I no longer snore". But an expectation for the size of the benefits obtained, how reproducible they are, and the time needed to realize them is not presented.
There is no evidence that this story relied solely or largely on a news release.
There are quotes from three different health care providers who work in the area of sleep medicine; there are also several quotes from people who have experienced benefit from the use of CPAP.
Article make clear that lifestyle changes, weight reduction, and surgery are other methods that are available and used to help manage this condition.
Total Score: 7 of 10 Satisfactory
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