Sleep Apnea and Acid Reflux

Does Sleep Apnea cause Acid Reflux or does Acid Reflux cause Sleep Apnea. There's mix studies, but A number of researchers and physicians believe there is an association. Is it posssible that pressure changes cause Acid Reflux and subsequently lead to Sleep Apnea. Esophagus cancer is on the rise, where acids leaks back into the esophagus

I was diagnosed with Acid Reflux shortly after 9/11. Been on medication, don't eat after 6 PM, raise the foot end of my bed and put a pillow under my legs. Watch what I eat. Other conditions suggest I raise the head of my bed. In any event, was diagnosed with Sleep Apnea September, 2018. Waited for CPAP as I was recovering from total hip replacement surgery.

Since using CPAP mask I've had a few episodes of food repeating, plus I suffer from belching, stomach gas and bloating. In any event, not fun dealing with both conditions. Have appointments with my Gastroenterologist and Pulmonary MDs

Welcome any thoughts

Generally, sleep apnea is caused by a narrow or restricted air passage. I think acid reflux can make SA worse, but not the cause of it.

jwoceanside wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 07, 2019 10:01 am

Does Sleep Apnea cause Acid Reflux or does Acid Reflux cause Sleep Apnea. There's mix studies, but A number of researchers and physicians believe there is an association. Is it posssible that pressure changes cause Acid Reflux and subsequently lead to Sleep Apnea. Esophagus cancer is on the rise, where acids leaks back into the esophagus

I was diagnosed with Acid Reflux shortly after 9/11. Been on medication, don't eat after 6 PM, raise the foot end of my bed and put a pillow under my legs. Watch what I eat. Other conditions suggest I raise the head of my bed. In any event, was diagnosed with Sleep Apnea September, 2018. Waited for CPAP as I was recovering from total hip replacement surgery.

Since using CPAP mask I've had a few episodes of food repeating, plus I suffer from belching, stomach gas and bloating. In any event, not fun dealing with both conditions. Have appointments with my Gastroenterologist and Pulmonary MDs

Welcome any thoughts

What? Raise the foot of your bed???? Just the opposite ...you need to raise the head of your bed to keep any acid in the stomach and out of the esophagus and throat. Put 4-6" blocks under the head bed frame or get a bed wedge.

Sorry about that LSAT! Have it backwards. I meant to say i raise the head of my bed for Acid Reflux and told to raise the foot of my bed after hip surgery. Should know better been doing it for years. The question is: how do I raise both lol. And the second more important question is; my reference to a connection, which some doctors are agreeing with

I don't think that there is any one definite answer to this question.
It's still the proverbial which came first...the chicken or the egg kind of thing.

To my thinking....just mine and from my own observations.....and I have had issues with GERD and also have a small hiatal hernia...I don't think my GERD was ever a factor in my OSA. I simply never really had or noticed any GERD symptoms up high enough to impact the airway behind the tongue where OSA is primarily affecting things. Now maybe someone else does get that acid damage way up high but I never did.
My issues were always right at the LES junction...never higher that I could tell.
Effective cpap therapy made zero difference in my GERD symptoms. Other people have gotten lucky and effective cpap therapy also wiped out any GERD symptoms. Not me though.

I never had OSA symptoms until menopause came to visit. That was what caused my OSA.
We age and things start to sag...it's part of getting older.

jwoceanside wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 07, 2019 10:01 am

Is it posssible that pressure changes cause Acid Reflux and subsequently lead to Sleep Apnea.

Uh... That doesn't make sense.

How could something lead to sa as a result of treatment of sa?

What I've heard postulated is the sucking created by fighting for breath during an obstructive apnea can suck up stomach acid.

The answer is yes. Yes, sleep apnea may cause acid reflux and yes, acid reflux may cause sleep apnea. It's a vicious cycle.

Sleep apnea may cause acid reflux because when the airway is obstructed there's a strong pressure gradient built up to try to force the obstructed airway open and that can cause a vacuum effect which pulls stomach contents into the airway.

Acid reflux can cause sleep apnea by irritating the lining of the airway and causing it to swell and narrow, making sleep apnea more likely.

And around and around we go.

Surprising fact, we don't have "acid reflux" because of too much acid in the digestive tract, but too little and in the wrong place. Acid is a signal to the sphincters to close, and when we "treat" reflux with PPI's and H2 acid blockers, antacids, etc. what we are doing is reducing the acid, so there's a weaker signal for the sphincters to close. Too little acid affects digestion, so food remains in the upper digestive tract longer and is not digested as well. Diabetes and insulin resistance also contribute to reduced stomach acid. A very good book addressing this is Why Stomach Acid is Good for You by Jonathan Wright, M.D.

Another theory (which compliments the low acid theory of Dr. Wright) is that we have an excess of bacterial overgrowth in the small intestine (from antibiotics, poor diet, etc) which builds up gas and blows through the lower and upper sphincters. See Fast Track Diet: Acid Reflux by Norman Robillard. His fast track diet really helps a lot of people.

I have terrible reflux if I eat the wrong things. I can have it while sitting straight up, so elevating the head of my bed does nothing. Acid foods don't bother me, but grains and dairy do.

PPI's are only meant to be taken short term--like two weeks. But millions of us became dependent on them for DECADES on our doctors' advice. They are associated with dementia, vitamin B 12 deficiencies, and the rise in incidence of esophageal cancer.

My GERD is much better on CPAP, but some people find it makes them worse, particularly if they have aerophagia. If you need CPAP you need to find a mask, a tongue position, or a body position that will decrease the reflux symptoms. It's important to work on it.