Sleep Apnea Can Affect Your Eyesight

Beyond the lack of quality sleep and the myriad of life complications that result from that, sleep apnea can actually affect your eyesight too! From Florida Today:

Sleep apnea adversely affects the delicate and fragile vessels in the eye, particularly the retina, by sudden fluctuations of blood pressure and oxygen levels. During undisturbed sleep, the systemic blood pressure decreases slowly. Retinal vessels dilate to match blood flow based upon oxygen and metabolic demands.In obstructive sleep apnea, oxygen levels drop rapidly and dramatically. Retinal vessels respond by dilating maximally to prevent retinal damage from oxygen deprivation or ischemia. The brain, however, responds to a lack of oxygen in the blood by releasing epinephrine and norepinephrine hormones that cause blood pressure spikes. These repeated hypertensive episodes throughout the night result in nests of micro-infarcts or mini-strokes and damage the retinal tissue.

Read the rest of the article regarding sleep apnea and eyesight right here. Or, if you already know you are suffering from sleep apnea and it's complications, contact us now for a confidential consultation.