According to Italian researchers people who suffer from obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may have more than being sleep deprived to blame for their daytime lapses.  The challenges in cognition may be actually caused by structural deficits, or changes in the gray matter of the brain that are brought about by the nightly oxygen deprivation that comes with OSA.

Dr. Vincenza Castronovo stated “OSA patients demonstrate several neuropsychological impairments, but current knowledge of the brain structures affected by OSA is limited.  This study provides the first evidence that structural brain abnormalities exist in regions susceptible to hypoxemia, and they can change with treatment.   Researchers compared structural differences in the brains of OSA patients and those who did not have OSA.  They used MRI and performance tests that checked long and short-term memory, executive functions and other abilities.

The obstructive sleep apnea patients had significant reductions in gray matter (GM) compared to the non-OSA test subjects.  They also discovered that certain areas of the brain were affected more than others.  “We found reduced GM in the OSA group when compared to the non-OSA group in several key regions of the brain…these two regions have significant bearing on abstract reasoning and executive function” said Dr. Castronovo.  The researchers also found that on tests, patients with sleep apnea showed impairments in memory, attention, executive functions and constructional abilities.

Amazingly, however, treatment of the obstructive sleep apnea seemed to reverse the damages.  After three months of treatment using CPAP the obstructive sleep apnea patients showed significant cognitive improvement.

Unfortunately, estimates of OSA patients who cannot tolerate CPAP treatment range from 25 – 50% of patients.  Obstructive sleep apnea is a serious, life threatening condition and should not go untreated.  If you are CPAP intolerant your sleep apnea can be treated without surgery.

Oral appliance therapy is available and is a proven effective treatment for OSA.  Contact your Columbus, Ohio area Dental Sleep Medicine practitioner, Dr. Mark Levy, today at 614-476-6696.  Get a better night’s sleep with oral appliance therapy.