16 per cent in Hyderabad suffer from sleep apnea

Studies conducted on sleep disorders show that 16 per cent of the population in the city suffers from Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). The disease is often equated with snoring but if ignored, people suffering from ‘simple snoring’ have a potential threat of getting OSA.

Speaking on the World Sleep Day on Friday, Dr Srinivas Kishore Sistla, consultant sleep specialist, ENT head and neck surgeon says, “Recent studies have shown that this disorder dramatically increases the chances of hypertension, atrial fibrillation, diabetes and obesity.”

Sleep apnea patients have 83 per cent chance of developing drug-resistant hypertension and 91 per cent chance of suffering from nighttime heart attacks. Dr Sampurna Ghosh, sleep specialist says, “People with sleep disorders need to consult an ENT specialist and an evaluation with help of sleep studies and sleep endoscopies needs to be done.”

At present two treatment modalities are available for OSA patients- Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) and surgery. Although CPAP machine gives good results, most patients discontinue the usage after three years. On the other hand, surgical mode treatment provides permanent relief.

The CPAP machine costs between Rs 30,000 to Rs 60,000. It is essentially an air blower that helps patients sleep in comfort. OSA patients usually have problems in breathing and as a result keep getting up often in the night. The lungs try to draw oxygen, but it does not get sufficient of it. Surgery costs between Rs 30,000 to Rs 1 lakh depending on the severity of the problem.

Sleep disorder studies range from level one to four. Sleep endoscopy tests are conducted to find out where the obstructions are. Dr Srinivas Kishore says that in the West there are implants just like a pace maker but are costly. In the USA it costs Rs 20,000 dollars for an implant.