Roberto Muñoz PHOTO: Manuel Castells

According to a research presented by Dr. Roberto Muñoz at the School of Medicine and in the Clínica Universidad de NavarraThe study was presented by Dr. Roberto Muñoz at the Medical Journal, people with severe sleep apnea (SAHS) are more than twice as likely to suffer an ischemic stroke. Specifically, 2.5 more.

This has been verified in an analysis carried out for his doctoral thesis - co-directed by specialists from the CUN and UPV in Vitoria - among 394 subjects aged 70 and over. "After studying the quality of their sleep, we followed the volunteers for six years. After this time, 20 of them had suffered a stroke," explains this man from Pamplona. In this way, he confirmed that in addition to the fact that sleep apnea affects mainly middle-aged and elderly people - it is estimated that 5% of adults suffer from it - its prevalence can increase significantly as they get older.

Likewise, the new MD warns that apnea "can appear in pediatric ages, although with different causes and characteristics". Among the risk factors that most predispose to suffer from it, the expert highlights obesity: "Therefore, one of the measures to avoid the problem is to lose weight. In fact, there are patients who only by reducing their weight have even managed to make apnea disappear.

"It is also advisable to avoid sleeping on the back, since this posture facilitates the onset of snoring, as well as giving up smoking and excessive alcohol consumption," adds Roberto Muñoz. In the most severe cases, treatment includes the use of a pressurized air mask at night, although he stresses that each patient should receive the treatment best suited to his or her case.

Sequelae and disability
In the opinion of Roberto Muñoz, a doctor from the Neurology Service of the Navarra Hospital Complex, although the mortality rate due to stroke is high, "in recent years it has been significantly reduced, both in Spain and in the Autonomous Community of Navarra, thanks, above all, to the stroke units in hospitals and the immediate care programs".

In spite of everything, a high percentage of those affected have after-effects and, in addition, some disability: "We are, therefore, facing a serious public health problem, not only because of the deaths it causes, but also because it is one of the main causes of disability in our society".

Regarding the problems associated with sleep apnea, Roberto Muñoz points out that the problem - which is basically characterized by intense snoring accompanied by prolonged pauses in breathing (more than 10 seconds) - also causes fatigue and lower intellectual performance, since sleep is of poorer quality. "In the long term, deadline, furthermore, breathing disorders can lead to hypertension, cardiovascular problems and, finally, stroke, hence the importance of preventing and treating it from the outset," the expert concludes.