Excessive Sleepiness May Persist in Those with Sleep Apnea and Brain Injuries
In a small study of sleep apnea among patients with traumatic brain injuries (TBI), it has been shown that excessive daytime sleepiness may not improve with treatment.
Despite treatment with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) and the effective resolution of apnea and snoring, 13 patients continued to have excessive daytime sleepiness and neuropsychological function tests that indicated poor sleep. The researchers suggest that some permanent deficits relating to TBI and sleep apnea may not be reversed by CPAP.
Due to the small number of subjects, further research will be necessary to understand the nature of sleep disorders among people with TBI.
Reference
Castriotta R et al. "Treatment of sleep disorders after traumatic brain injury." J Clin Sleep Med. 2009; 5: 137-44.
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Comments
After I got into an auto accident on 12/24/04, I developed a rare neurological disorder, Cervical Dystonia aka Spasmodic Torticollis.. I don’t think I got a brain injury, as such, but the disorder I have is a neurological disorder, and that is all about the brain. Anyway about 3 years after the crash, I started experiencing bouts of unbelievable sleepiness. It is usually hard for me to awake, rather than sleeping during the day. I don’t get that urge. I go in, and out of phases of sleep problems. I will sleep too long, and my doctor tells me that it’s called “HyperSomnia,” which is the complete opposite of insomnia, kwim?
Hi, I’m writing once more. It’s kind
of like an addendum to my last comment. First of all, the inititals
I made at the end of my comment, kwim: know what I mean, is what it means. I had a couple of people ask me, so I just wanted to clear that up. Also, a few months ago, my pdoc changed my meds and put me back on Prozac – the only AD that will take away depression. Anyway a lot of the
sleeping I was doing happened to me b/c I was depressed about my neuro disorder! After I began Prozac it was like a new world and I liked that feeling!
interesting article on TBI & sleep apnea (4/19/09)- thanks!
i did a sleep study last year (08) and have been on CPAP since august or september of 08. when i did my sleep study we discovered i was oxygenating at 63%, ~16% of the time. would this cause such an injury?
i know that ‘traumatic’ may imply actual impact. but i haven’t been happy with CPAP. and not feeling rested is only one of many complaints i have.