Apnea and Brain issues. MRI looks bad.

[yoyoyomonica]

Is it true that the brain really suffers if apnea is present? What kind of symptoms does one experience? I have hbp, depression, migraine, chronic daily headaches, bipolar, thyroid, cant loose weight, chronic fatigue, dyslexia, ibs, gerd, epilepsy

On my mri I have enlarged ventricles, lesions, atrophy, in alot of places and hydrocephalus. and said something about a OLD lacunar.

now for the questions, with treatment can some of these things get better? or go away? did alot of these things happen because of the apnea? Did I make a mistake not treating it years ago when I found out I had apnea?

in my sleep study I had 4 years ago. they said I seized all night long. Stopped breathing about 20-40 times a hour and my o2 sat dropped below 70. I dont know if this is bad or not.

[Heavylids]

Is it true that the brain really suffers if apnea is present? What kind of symptoms does one experience? I have hbp, depression, migraine, chronic daily headaches, bipolar, thyroid, cant loose weight, chronic fatigue, dyslexia, ibs, gerd, epilepsy

On my mri I have enlarged ventricles, lesions, atrophy, in alot of places and hydrocephalus. and said something about a OLD lacunar.

now for the questions, with treatment can some of these things get better? or go away? did alot of these things happen because of the apnea? Did I make a mistake not treating it years ago when I found out I had apnea?

in my sleep study I had 4 years ago. they said I seized all night long. Stopped breathing about 20-40 times a hour and my o2 sat dropped below 70. I dont know if this is bad or not.

Why wouldn't you ask your doctor these questions? I'm sure someone reviewed your sleep study results with you. Why would choose to go untreated?

You need to go over these things with a doctor and not an apnea forum.

[avi123]

Are you talking about apneas in the meaning of sleep disorders or brain epileptic seizures? Apneas in sleep disorders have to do with respiration while epileptic seizures deal with electric activity in the brain.

As to sleep apnea association with brain lesions, I know about this study:

Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Study of Brain Metabolism in Obstructive
Sleep Apnoea Syndrome before and after Continuous Positive Airway Pressure
Treatment.

Google it.

[kteague]

Sometimes there can be than one source of problems. People report here all the time that treating sleep apnea has helped with several of the issues you've mentioned. Giving your body and brain proper sleep in both quantity and quality will provide an atmosphere for you to begin to heal from whatever damage poor sleep and low oxygen may have caused. It may take a little time, but at some point you'll begin to see what symptoms remain and you can address them with your doctor. A good neurologist could tell you if any of what you described is absolutely unrelated to sleep apnea and needs to be addressed separately. Some of your MRI findings are pretty specific, and I really can't speak to those. I can say that I too had lesions show up in my MRIs. The good thing is treating your OSA can at least stop further damage, and maybe even reverse some. That makes treatment a winning approach no matter what. Good luck as you go forward.

[yoyoyomonica]

Is it true that the brain really suffers if apnea is present? What kind of symptoms does one experience? I have hbp, depression, migraine, chronic daily headaches, bipolar, thyroid, cant loose weight, chronic fatigue, dyslexia, ibs, gerd, epilepsy

On my mri I have enlarged ventricles, lesions, atrophy, in alot of places and hydrocephalus. and said something about a OLD lacunar.

now for the questions, with treatment can some of these things get better? or go away? did alot of these things happen because of the apnea? Did I make a mistake not treating it years ago when I found out I had apnea?

in my sleep study I had 4 years ago. they said I seized all night long. Stopped breathing about 20-40 times a hour and my o2 sat dropped below 70. I dont know if this is bad or not.

Why wouldn't you ask your doctor these questions? I'm sure someone reviewed your sleep study results with you. Why would choose to go untreated?

You need to go over these things with a doctor and not an apnea forum.

GEEESH!! thanks for your help.

[yoyoyomonica]

Are you talking about apneas in the meaning of sleep disorders or brain epileptic seizures? Apneas in sleep disorders have to do with respiration while epileptic seizures deal with electric activity in the brain.

As to sleep apnea association with brain lesions, I know about this study:

Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Study of Brain Metabolism in Obstructive
Sleep Apnoea Syndrome before and after Continuous Positive Airway Pressure
Treatment.

Google it.

They are epileptic. I am so new to this I am not sure of much. Thank u and I will read up on that right now.

[yoyoyomonica]

Sometimes there can be than one source of problems. People report here all the time that treating sleep apnea has helped with several of the issues you've mentioned. Giving your body and brain proper sleep in both quantity and quality will provide an atmosphere for you to begin to heal from whatever damage poor sleep and low oxygen may have caused. It may take a little time, but at some point you'll begin to see what symptoms remain and you can address them with your doctor. A good neurologist could tell you if any of what you described is absolutely unrelated to sleep apnea and needs to be addressed separately. Some of your MRI findings are pretty specific, and I really can't speak to those. I can say that I too had lesions show up in my MRIs. The good thing is treating your OSA can at least stop further damage, and maybe even reverse some. That makes treatment a winning approach no matter what. Good luck as you go forward.

This is encouraging. The reason I went untreated is because I didnt know that there was a part 2 of the study. I didnt have another $700 to do the second study. So I only got the findings study done. Plus my insurnace wouldnt cover much of the equipment. We just cant afford it. But my neuro is insistent that I go for a new study and get fitted for real.

[archangle]

Apnea often screws up your heart, lungs, brain, and other organs. It might cause many kinds of problems or make them worse. The longer apnea goes untreated, the more damage it can do.

When an apneac gets treated, it reduces further damage, and many people heal up quite a bit from the damage that has been done to their heart, brain, and lungs. How much recovery, and how long it takes varies a lot from person to person.

Yes, you probably made a seriously bad decision to not get treated years ago. Your numbers indicate you have fairly bad apnea. Your health has probably suffered. Look into getting a CPAP for your apnea.

However, don't assume all your problems are due to apnea. Even non-apneacs may have similar problems.

[kaiasgram]

Hi monica, based on the sleep study 4 years ago what was the specific recommendation regarding treatment? Regular CPAP or some other type of machine?

[Goofproof]

The real question here, you know you have Sleep Apnea, have you been treating it successfully for the last four years? If not why, more brain damage is bound to result from unsuccessful treatment.

Dead and damaged brain cells don't get better, but the brain can sometimes an other path to work from.

It's important to use a data capable xpap and the software to confirm your treatment is good, along with the useof a recording pulse ox. Jim

[jencat824]

You need to have a very long talk with your dr. If you have both epilepsy & OSA, there may or may not be a connection between to the two. Only a good physician can determine that. You have some problems similar to mine (the OSA & epilepsy) and with a lot of testing no link between mine was 'proven' but is 'strongly thought to be' connected. If you 'seized' all night from epilspsy, it makes it harder to read in terms of actual apnea incidents (I've been there), but make it even more necessary to treat the OSA.

Some of the other MRI results could be OSA related, or could be coincidence, leisons for example could be related or could be entirely something else, like MS. You need answers from your dr for your peace of mind, and to plan your treatment going forward. I don't mean to repeat what has already been said about seeing the dr and getting OSA treatment, but in good conscience, I can't help but adding my thought to the others here. I think the article referenced by another forum member here, while technical, explains some of he relationship between OSA and the brain. Yes, you may have made a mistake 4 yrs ago, you can only go forward from here by getting the new test and treating your OSA. I assume you are treating your epilepsy. Is that treatment working or are your having 'break-through' seizures? Treating your OSA can help in some cases of epilepsy - another reason to treat your OSA. OK, now I'm repeating myself. We are here for you.

Hang in there, you are not alone,
Jen

[DoriC]

Apparently you've been diagnosed with a Lacuner Stroke in the past which can sometimes be silent but can affect personality, mood swings and memory, among other things. You definitely have to see a good neurologist who specializes in sleep apnea as well, and get a definite plan going. I can't believe that no one followed up with you for a titration. At the very least you require cpap therapy. What you describe really needs immediate attention. Good luck and keep us posted.

[sylvie]

Here's a very interesting thread to do with Long Term Brain Damage from Sleep Apnea. I'm reading it myself right now.
viewtopic/t68160/Long-Term-damage-done- ... Apnea.html

[sylvie]

I just purchased this article: The Potentially Harmful Medical Consequences of Untreated Sleep-Disordered Breathing

The Evidence Supporting Brain Damage.

I don't know if I'm allowed to post it here.

[avi123]

The potentially harmful medical consequences of untreated sleep-disordered breathing: the evidence supporting brain damage.

Abstract:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19411520