Sleep apnea not only impacts your physical health, but can also have significant effects on your eyes and threaten your vision.
What is sleep apnea?
Sleep apnea is a potentially serious sleep disorder characterized by repeated interruptions in breathing during sleep. If you snore loudly and still feel fatigued after sleeping all night, you may have sleep apnea. The main types of sleep apnea are:
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), which is the more common form that occurs when throat muscles relax and block the flow of air into the lungs
Central sleep apnea (CSA), which occurs when the brain doesn't send proper signals to the muscles that control breathing
How common is sleep apnea?
25% of adults in Canada have symptoms and risk factors for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
1 in 5 adults have at least mild OSA, and 1 in 15 have at least moderate OSA.
In 2016, 6.4% of Canadians reported being diagnosed with sleep apnea.
Risk factors of sleep apnea?
Obstructive sleep apnea can affect anyone, but specific factors may elevate your risk, such as:
Excess weight
Older age
Narrowed airway
High blood pressure, known as hypertension
Chronic nasal congestion
Smoking
Diabetes
Male sex
A family history of sleep apnea
Asthma
Floppy Eyelid Syndrome and Sleep Apnea
Floppy eyelid syndrome is a condition characterized by reduced elasticity of the eyelids, resulting in sagging and easy eversion of the upper eyelids. This condition may indicate an underlying, more serious disorder - obstructive sleep apnea.
Symptoms of Sleep Apnea
The most common symptoms of obstructive and central sleep apneas include:
Complications of Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is a serious medical condition. Complications of OSA can include:
Daytime fatigue - repeated awakings causes by sleep apnea can lead to drowiness, fatigue and irritability. This may increase your risk of accidents at home, work and in your motor vehicle. For children, this may manifext in behavrioural problems and poor performance in school
Hypertension (high blood pressure) or cardiovascular events.
Rapid decreases in blood oxygen levels associated with OSA elevate blood pressure and place stress on the cardiovascular system. This may increase the risk of heart attack, stroke and irregular heartbeats, such as atrial fibrillation.
Type 2 diabetes. Having sleep apnea increases your risk of developing insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.
Metabolic syndrome.
This condition, characterized by elevated blood pressure, abnormal cholesterol levels, high blood sugar, and increased waist circumference, is associated with a heightened risk of heart disease.
Liver problems. People with sleep apnea are more likely to have irregular results on liver function tests, and an increased risk nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
Sleep-deprived partners.
But what about the eyes?
Several eye conditions are linked to sleep apnea, and certain machines used for its treatment might lead to dry eye and other eye issues.
Dry Eyes Individuals with sleep apnea are more prone to experiencing dry eyes due to ocular irritation, irregular tear break-up time, and increased laxity of the upper and lower eyelids. Additionally, one of the most common treatment options for sleep apnea is a CPAP machine, a device that supplies constant and steady air pressure. Many who use the machine experience air leaks causing ocular irriation and dryness.
To help manage these symptoms, your eye doctor may recommend a preservative free thick gel or ointment before bed to sooth and protect your eyes from dryness.
Even though eye irritation might happen, it is recommended to keep using the CPAP machine, as it can avert the potentially life-threatening effects of sleep apnea.
Glaucoma Individuals with obstructive sleep apnea are approximately ten times more likely to develop glaucoma. This is theorized to be attributed to the decrease in blood oxygen levels that occur during episodes of apnea. Reduced oxygen concentration in the blood may contribute to the deterioration of the optic nerve, potentially resulting in glaucoma.
Non-Arteritic Ischemic Optic Neuropathy (NAION) This is a condition that causes sudden vision loss in one eye, also sometimes known as an eye stroke. Some studies suggest 70 to 80 percent of patients with NAION have been found to have OSA.
Papilledema Often associated with idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) which predominantly affects young women and may be linked to increased venous blood flow. Interrupted breathing during apneas may dilate blood vessels and increase pressure, leading to optic disc swelling.
Macular Conditions Research indicates an association between sleep apnea and incidence of central serous chorioretinopathy (CSCR) and diabetic clinically significant macular edema. Both conditions result in macular swelling, leading to vision distortion, yet they originate from different causes.
While everyone should schedule routine eye exams, it is that much more is crucial if you have sleep apnea. During your exam your eye doctor can help detect and treat sleep apnea related eye conditions and prevent irreversible vision loss.
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