I have it. Over 50% with afib do. Treating sleep apnea does lessen afib burden, but doesn't cure it.

petey

I have moderate sleep apnea if sleeping on my back. SO I try not to sleep on my back. I had a sleep study done about 3-4 years ago. They are really expensive ($3,000 - $5,000) comes to mind, but I'm not sure if I remember this right. So if you have this done, make sure you get pre approval from your insurance company.

Anyhow, I didn't use a CPAP machine (the thought doesn't sit well with me). A few months ago I located an ENT under my insurance that made oral appliances. Two weeks ago I started using this every other night while I get used to it (delay in starting while I dealt with my stroke issues). I can't say if it helps. I got the appliance pre approved by my insurance company and they paid 100%. Without insurance this would have cost $3200. If you go to a dentist, you will probably have to pay full price. Send me a message if you want further info.

Here's the appliance:
http://www.airwaylabs.com/what-is-tap.php

I was diagnosed with sleep apnea, used the machine. Machine made no difference. I got a dental appliance like Paul's. It actually gave me jaw pain and I had to be on a soft diet for weeks and it caused pain when chewing. I was told never to use that appliance again, after insurance paid about $2000 for it. So now I try to sleep on my stomach. When I was going thru all this, I didn't know i had a fib yet, so can't tell if it helped. I thought they were just palpitations at the time.

I have sleep apnea. I have used a CPAP machine for 6+ years. The one night I didn't use my machine I woke up in a-fib. Went to hospital and was placed on a cardizem drip and converted to NSR 12 hours later. I never rest/sleep without my machine and have been a-fib free for almost 10 months. I am a believer in CPAP.

If over 50% of afibbers have sleep apnea, it would seem it is the biggest cause of afib. I'm talking about obstructive sleep apnea, not central sleep apnea.

petey

what is obstructrive sleep apnea and central sleep apnea?

"In sleep disorders, obstructive sleep apnea is the most common condition thats seen, but a significant number of people with obstructive sleep apnea will also have central sleep apnea.
Central sleep apnea is thought to be a condition thats associated with a number of different neurologic problems, as well as heart or kidney failure. During the night, people with central sleep apnea stop breathing when signals in the brain that tells the body to breathe dont work properly. No effort is even made to inhale. In contrast, with obstructive sleep apnea, an effort is made to breathe in, but because of collapse in the upper airways, air cant get into the lungs."

petey

hmm thanks Petey - didnt know there were two kinds.

My husband has obstructive sleep apnea and uses a cpap. He was diagnosed with OSA after his first afib episode. He did 2 different sleep studies at home rather than in a lab. He had an ablation In November of 2012 . The cpap has been a blessing....I don't have to nudge him to breath. We both sleep 100% better!

pamdidi: Actually it is more complicated than that. You can actually also have hypopneas...

"...[hypopneas are] episodes of overly shallow breathing or an abnormally low respiratory rate. Hypopnea is less severe than apnea (which is a more complete loss of airflow). It may likewise result in a decreased amount of air movement into the lungs and can cause oxygen levels in the blood to drop. It more commonly is due to partial obstruction of the upper airway."

petey

I've only had a-fib episodes the past year, but I've had OSA for more than 12 years. I refused to go on CPAP because of the awful mask, but a couple of years ago, I started waking up, gasping for air. I finally agreed to CPAP, but was given a very small, light mask called nasal pillows, that just presses against your nostrils. I took to it right away, and have only missed nights when I had a very bad cold. My sleep is 1,000% better, especially since my wife doesn't wake me up all night, trying to stop my snoring ;-)

If you are interested in a good CPAP forum, I recommend this one: http://www.cpaptalk.com/CPAP-Sleep-Apnea-Forum.html?sid=2a67d47b5af477cf37aa3f2811c1f0a3

I am 2 1/2 months post-pulmonary vein isolation ablation, and I had a sleep study done in order to see if that might have been a factor, and may continue to give me problems. The findings were:

-only three on the scale, I have NO SLEEP APNEA

-no abnormal limb movements

-rare, light snoring

-no need for aggressive treatment

-recommend that I sleep on my side rather than my back (the three events I have are all on my back)

-recommend that I use a contour pillow (but for some reason those are hard to find she said)

-I did have three "arousals for no apparent reason" ... (That's got to be from worry, right? (-: ) And woke up nine timnes during the study ( but I would attribute half of those just being wired up like the bionic man ... Very uncomfortable).


I am still concerned about sleep though. I don't seem to be able to sleep more than about five hours. And that may even include waking up once in a while. Sometimes I may only sleep for an hour and wake up ( though I usually get back to sleep). I have moved out of my wife's bed for maybe 5 out of 7 nights just to make sure I don't get woken up by snoring, accidental touching, the inevitable covers battle etc. Sorry hun! I try to avoid takingAmbien, but I have a doctor friend who says that it is a miracle drug and that I should not be afraid to take it every night. Still on the fence about that though.

If anybody has any reflections on my sleeping problems, I would love to hear them. I you glad that I don't have sleep apnea. But the downside is that it has me searching for my cause of a fib all the more so. I hate it when the doctor says, "maybe you just have a diseased heart" or "your substrate is probably just bad".

WldLuv2jog: do you take any beta blockers. Some of us have suspected sleep disturbances associated with beta blockers like metoprolol

Paul60 ... no Im not. Im on sotalol, but that has a rate reducing effect I believe in addition to the anti-arrythmic.

Sotalol IS a beta blocker:

"Sotalol is used to control rapid heartbeats and abnormal heart rhythms.

This medicine is a beta-blocker. It works by affecting the response to nerve impulses in certain parts of the body, like the heart. As a result, the heart beats slower and at a regular rhythm.

This medicine is available only with your doctor's prescription.

Common Brand Names:

Betapace

Betapace AF

Sorine"


petey