"First Drug Therapy for Sleep Apnea"

"Study Identifies First Drug Therapy for Sleep Apnea"

https://health.ucsd.edu/news/press-rele ... eep-apnea/

In this study that drug is (at this time) targeted to obese people with OSA and the skinny people of the world who have OSA are pretty much still on their own. Good luck in finding someone who will prescribe this sort of drug to a skinny person with just OSA to deal with....not withstanding getting your insurance to pay for it if you are skinny and don't have a blood sugar problem.

Losing extra weight may or may not allow a person to lose the OSA diagnosis and be able to lose the cpap machine.
It all depends on what is the cause of the OSA and extra weight isn't the only cause and losing that extra weight may or may not make a marked difference in the OSA diagnosis status. Remember folks....obesity isn't the lone cause of OSA.

BUT.....never hurts to lose excess weight as long as it is done in a well managed plan of attack and the weight lost is lost in a healthy way....and the weight gets kept off (which is probably the hardest part). Everything I have read about using these sorts of drugs for weight loss seems to point to the weight coming right back if/when the drug is discontinued.

I can certainly understand the allure though. That bug has bitten me as well...you know the one where you lose considerable weight and your pressure needs get reduced and in the back of your mind you wonder if you "still have OSA". I haven't done anything to scratch that curiosity itch though. I keep remembering that I was a skinny ass little woman when I first started showing signs of OSA and it's really doubtful that weight caused my OSA.
Instead I blame Mother Nature and Menopause because it wasn't until I got menopause that I started with the OSA symptoms. That extra weight I put on (and have now lost...again) came on AFTER my diagnosis of OSA and not before.

Every article I read about this study made sure to fat shame the victims of OSA . The thing is I wonder how many of us gained the weight due to the OSA. Tired/sleep deprived = comfort eating ?

I work with someone who has had success keeping the weight off after Ozempic. I think about half or more of these articles are full of it. They pick the side they want fish for the answers they want. The underlying study is interesting tho. I am curious as to the mechanism tirzepatide targets OSA other than weight loss. The article doesn't explain it. "Considerable data suggest that a drug therapy that targets both sleep apnea and obesity is beneficial"

babydinosnoreless wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 26, 2024 10:35 am

I am curious as to the mechanism tirzepatide targets OSA other than weight loss. The article doesn't explain it.

I don't know that there is an answer to your question at this time. All too new and not enough concrete follow up data.

Now when/if they start giving those shots to a skinny ass person that only has OSA to mess with.....that's when I will sit up and take more notice about the potential results.

While weight does/can play a factor of some sort.....it's not the only factor in someone having OSA.

The medical community needs to get over the "just lose the weight and you will lose the OSA" mentality. It's not doing anyone any favors.

A long way to go to get to first. So far, it's only FDA approved for diabetes and obesity. If you want it for OSA, you'll need to find a doctor willing to prescribe off label; and then your insurance won't cover this expensive medication. If you happen to be obese with OSA your doctor may accommodate, but the insurance companies are still not covering weight loss drugs. Diabetes with OSA? You might have a shot after trying every other diabetes medication first.

stevenal wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 26, 2024 1:13 pm

A long way to go to get to first. So far, it's only FDA approved for diabetes and obesity. If you want it for OSA, you'll need to find a doctor willing to prescribe off label; and then your insurance won't cover this expensive medication. If you happen to be obese with OSA your doctor may accommodate, but the insurance companies are still not covering weight loss drugs. Diabetes with OSA? You might have a shot after trying every other diabetes medication first.

It might be different for me as I'm already on semiglutide for diabetes. I wish there was more information available on the mechanism to help OSA. If its strictly weigh loss I'm with pugsy in calling BS. I lost more weight when I started cpap than I have with the semiglutide but if there is something else that helps the OSA I'd be interested.

I've been on Mounjaro over a year now. My A1C is perfect, now and I lost 50 pounds but my apnea events have not changed at all. Still need my cpap.

Bluper wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 01, 2024 8:11 pm

I've been on Mounjaro over a year now. My A1C is perfect, now and I lost 50 pounds but my apnea events have not changed at all. Still need my cpap.

Thank you. . Good to know. I lost about 60 lbs when I first started my cpap journey. It gave me more energy which allowed me to move more. . The semiglutide shuts down food noise but hasn't really caused me to lose a bunch more weight maybe 15-20 lbs but hopefully my A-1 C is going in the right direction. My apneas are also unchanged.

But it's not tirzepatide. I didn't know if the article was saying the sleep apnea goes away from the weight loss of if it was some other mechanism of the tirzepatide. I was hoping for the later but it doesn't sound like it. I feel like the weight gain did not cause my apneas but that the apnea caused the weight gain.

The debate continues--Which came first--fat or apnea?
It certainly makes sense to treat BOTH.
Useful treatment of obesity is long overdue.

Pugsy wrote: ↑

Tue Jun 25, 2024 10:43 am

Instead I blame Mother Nature and Menopause because it wasn't until I got menopause that I started with the OSA symptoms. That extra weight I put on (and have now lost...again) came on AFTER my diagnosis of OSA and not before.

Me, too, Pugsy. Skinny female until menopause. Then severe apnea symptoms which were dismissed by sleep doc because I was a skinny female. Then slow weight gain, all belly fat.

Finally diagnosed 10 years later. Two failed tries at CPAP because of zero helpful support from sleep clinic. And finally able to wear a mask thanks to this forum! Starting to get healthier now that I have the energy to do more than drag through each day just hoping to survive until bedtime.