Treating Sleep Apnea Could Lower Blood Pressure in Men

Treating obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may also help reduce high blood pressure in men, suggests a study.

"All types of patients may benefit from this treatment, even those with other chronic medical conditions," said Bharati Prasad, MD, MS, the study's principal investigator. "It's important to now do a prospective study enrolling different types of patients with sleep apnea."

Obstructive Sleep Apnea - Overview
Obstructive sleep apnea should be suspected in overweight middle aged adults who snore loudly and which can cause interruption of breathing for 10 seconds or more and this results in reduced blood o

The study, appearing in the Oct. 15 issue of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, examined the effectiveness of obstructive sleep apnea treatment on high blood pressure and diabetes control in 221 men with preexisting hypertension or type 2 diabetes and a new diagnosis of OSA. Participants received positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy upon treatment initiation.

Results show that both systolic and diastolic blood pressure decreased significantly with initiation of OSA treatment at both the first follow-up, 3-6 months after initiation, and the second follow-up, 9-12 months later.

According to the authors, this is the first study to examine the effectiveness of treatment of obstructive sleep apnea on routine measures of hypertension and diabetes control in a practice-based clinical setting. The results show the real-world effectiveness of OSA treatment on hypertension.

How to Measure Blood Pressure
Animation to understand what is blood pressure and how to measure systolic and diastolic readings of blood pressure. High or low blood pressure can be a risk factor for many chronic diseases.

Source-Eurekalert

Obstructive Sleep Apnea
Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when the tissue in the back of the throat collapses completely blocking the airway. Obstructive sleep apnea is treated using continuous positive airway pressure.

Foods that Can Lower Your High Blood Pressure
Foods rich in dietary potassium, calcium and anti-oxidants such as rutin, kukoamine and vitamin C can lower your high blood pressure significantly.