Serving Patients in the areas of Grand Rapids, Holland, and Big Rapids MIIf you know anything about obstructive sleep apnea, you probably realize that the consequences of this sleep breathing disorder include chronic daytime fatigue, unexplained changes in mood, and poor performance at work or school. There is another ramification of this serious sleep breathing disorder: tumor growth. Your Grand Rapids sleep apnea specialists at TMJ & Sleep Disorders of Michigan are here to explore this relationship in greater detail.
When you suffer from sleep apnea, you experience a collapse of the airway. This collapse is either partial or complete, disrupting the sleep cycle as the brain sends signals to the body that air supply has been restricted or temporarily cut off. This lack of oxygen during sleep is referred to as hypoxia, which refers clinically to a deficiency in the amount of oxygen reaching tissue in your body.
Scientists in Barcelona, Spain, recently researched this issue in greater detail on a study that was published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. They compared young mice (with age equivalent to human teenagers) and older mice (whose age corresponds to individuals over the age of 65). The study found that hypoxia during sleep accelerated tumor growth—but only in the younger mice. A release associated with the study cited the potential consequences of sleep apnea, described as a classification of a respiratory chronic disease. Another research study, published in September of 2014, examined the patient data from a large hospital in Ontario, Canada, over a span of almost two decades, and found more evidence of a potential link between sleep-related hypoxia and tumorigenesis.
Sleep apnea doctors in Grand Rapids like Dr. Jerry Mulder and Dr. Allyson Mulder have been aware of the correlation between sleep apnea and cancer. Further recent research determined sleep apnea patients were 68 percent more likely to develop a form of cancer—and nearly five times as likely to die from cancer, experiencing a morbidity rate 4.8 times the normal standard.
TMJ & Sleep Disorders of Michigan specializes in the identification and treatment of sleep breathing disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea. Both of our Holland sleep apnea doctors have the unique and extensive training you want to identify sleep apnea. Both Dr. Jerry Mulder and Dr. Allyson Mulder currently belong to both the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine, as well as the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Both doctors can differentiate the symptoms of sleep apnea from other potential disorders, and then provide relief—preferably through a course of oral appliance therapy.
The important thing to remember is that sleep apnea is a serious disorder that will not go away on its own. You must receive the proper diagnosis and treatment from a qualified medical professional. Failing to do so could cost you your life! If you are ready to find relief for your sleep apnea, contact our office today at (616) 458-0631 to schedule a consultation.
TMJ & Sleep Disorders of Michigan is here to serve patients in the areas of Grand Rapids, Holland, and Big Rapids in Michigan.
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