Fwd: Sleep Apnea, Hearing Loss and Thickened Blood

[-SWS]

I know, from having read posts here, that Mike at sleepguide.com doesn't mind the cross-posting of important apnea-related information. And this particular post by Steven Y. Park, MD is an important one IMHO:

I came across this interesting article in Sleep Medicine, where they showed that in patients with obstructive sleep apnea, a significant number were hemodynamically hyperviscosity positive (282/610 patients). Hyperviscous means that blood is thicker and more prone to clog arteries. Of these 282 patients, 239 had brainstem AEP abnormalities. AEPs are tests for ear neurologic reflexes where clicks are given in one ear and brain waves are measured in response. It tests for inner ear and brainstem function.

Ones that didn't have hyperviscosity all had normal AEPs. Of these 239 patients, 57 had bilateral sensorineural hearing changes (no waves at all), and 182 patients had significant bilateral signal changes. After 6 months of CPAP, hyperviscosity was normalized in 159 patients. In 112 of these 159 patients a repeat AEP became normal. Of the 80 patients on CPAP that did not normalize, hemodilution therapy resulted in normalization in 61 patients. Hemodilution is when blood is made thinner by removing some blood and adding some saline.

This paper talks about bilateral conditions but also brings up the possibility of unilateral sudden sensorineural hearing loss being explained by this mechanism. It's in line with my personal observation that every patient that I see with sudden sensorineural hearing loss has a history and exam consistent with an underlying sleep-breathing disorder. The handful that agreed to undergo sleep studies showed significant obstructive sleep apnea in all cases. I think the implications of this paper are enormous.

http://www.sleepguide.com/forum/topics/ ... g-loss-and


As a side note, I am an apnea patient with a transient albeit very limited history of hyperviscosity (very thick blood noted during past blood draws). Fortunately no hearing loss during my last visit to an ENT.

[Slinky]

Thanks, -SWS. I must have missed that one.

[-SWS]

That study and Dr. Park's comments are good 'uns IMHO.

I would note that a couple of my own blood draws in past years played out like a slow Heinz Ketchup commercial... Half expected the technician to rap me upside the head, as if I were an uncooperative Heinz bottle.

[Slinky]

I had that happen a time or two. But when the Crohn's is active it isn't unusual for me to dehydrate easily, especially in a hot summer spell. Hasn't happened since xPAP tho and the last couple of draws (have to have them every 3 months) blood has been rather thin. At least as compared to previously. I seem to have gone from ... forget the numbers ... shall we say from barely normal high to very normal low ... or vice versa, but staying barely w/in normal limits.

[gulfpearl]

pre cpap my rbc was always 15.5. Doctor would tell me to drink more water that I was dehydrated. I told him I drank lots of water over 2 liters / day, that it was probablely related to my OSA. Now after4 years of optimal cpap pressure my rbc is now13 which is low normal.

[MaryC]

Thanks for the heads up on that article, it is worth reading.

[Eureka]

While searching for a cause of my fatigue, my doctor found an elevated red blood count. He suspected Polycythemia Vera and sent me to a hematologist. One of the treatments is a blood draw to lower the blood count. Ironically, my numbers returned to normal before any treatment was done. My doctor was much surprised that the count was normal. Since being diagnosed with severe sleep apnea I found that the high red count can be caused by apnea. I haven't had it checked since being treated, but the last test I had was normal. I might say that my sleep test was a last resort after many tests, xrays, specialists etc. Too bad it wasn't the first test done. Sure would have saved a lot of grief (and money) and would have given me (?) years of better health. I wish we could speed the day when doctors would be on the lookout for sleep apnea and help people find helpful treatment.