The Relationship Between Sleep Apnea & Narcolepsy

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and narcolepsy are both serious, debilitating sleep disorders that rob suffers of restful sleep and cause excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS). In many cases, people with OSA and narcolepsy complain of similar symptoms, and in some cases, patients are misdiagnosed with one health problem instead of the other. In addition, some studies have found that those who suffer from narcolepsy are more likely to suffer from OSA.

Sleep Disorder Misdiagnosis

In a small number of cases, some patients suffering from narcolepsy are diagnosed with sleep apnea, while other patients suffering from sleep apnea are diagnosed with narcolepsy. This is because the two sleep disorders have a few major symptoms in common:

• Excessive daytime sleepiness.
• Persistent fatigue.
• Nighttime disturbances.
• Sleep paralysis.
• Insomnia.

The best way to prevent a sleep disorder misdiagnosis is to undergo a sleep study in which medical professionals can take a close look at your sleep cycles and your ability to breathe while asleep. Someone suffering from sleep apnea will wake up multiple times each hour because on their obstructed airway. The two major tests for diagnosing narcolepsy are the polysomnogram (PSG) and the multiple sleep latency test (MSLT).

Suffering From Both Narcolepsy & Sleep Apnea

A 2009 study explored the relationship between sleep apnea and narcolepsy. Researchers studied 133 patients with narcolepsy and found that:

• 10 patients were first diagnosed with OSA, delaying their narcolepsy diagnosis.
• 23 patients were diagnosed with OSA and narcolepsy at the same time.
• OSA occurs more frequently in patients with narcolepsy than in the general population.

The study also found that treating sleep apnea with a CPAP device only improved excessive daytime sleepiness symptoms in a handful of patients who also had narcolepsy. Overall, both sleep disorders need to be treated in order to alleviate symptoms and see consistent improvements.

Surgical Sleep Solutions

It is absolutely vital that you are correctly diagnosed before you are treated for obstructive sleep apnea – and that you are also diagnosed and treated for other sleep disorders you may suffer from in addition to sleep apnea. At Surgical Sleep Solutions, we specialize in helping our patients treat their sleep apnea through an innovative, one-of-a-kind surgical procedure called bimaxillary advancement surgery. To learn more about this surgery, and how it helps effectively cure 95 to 99 percent of patients, please call us today at (855) 560-7378.