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Sleep apnea and GCA
My husband was diagnosed when PMR May 2023 and GCA Feb 2024. He’s been on very high doses of prednisone that has resulted in osteoporosis.
While he was in the hospital I noticed he was gasping for air during sleep. He would stop breathing for a while then gasp. This kept happening so now we’re going to do a home sleep study.
Has anyone else had experience with GCA and sleep apnea? Any insight would be greatly appreciated.
He was so healthy before he got PMR. Never spent a day in a hospital and was on no prescription meds. Now he’s on a number of drugs and he’s been through so much. He’s very upset about having to do this sleep study and even more upset with the thought of using a c-pap machine. But I worry so much that the sleep apnea could make the GCA worse or put him at higher risk of stroke, aneurism, heart attack etc.
He is finally down to 20 mg of prednisone. When he developed GCA he was on 80 and we’ve been tapering with the help of Actemra injections.
During CT scans they found narrowing by his bladder so he’s going in next week for another CT scan of the bladder area. They also found a thyroid nodule big enough to want to do a needle biopsy. He’s not happy. It’s been one thing after the other.
Can someone reassure me that once we get through all of this, that he can be healthy again? He’s 75.
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Use the C-Pap. They were invented to help even though they look unruly.
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3 ReactionsI don't think sleep apnea is a GCA problem or a PMR problem.
That being said, I developed sleep apnea after being diagnosed with PMR, I had frequent urination at night which was a clue for my primary care doctor to get a sleep study done.
https://www.sleepapnea.org/sleep-health/nighttime-urination-and-sleep-apnea/#:~:text=While%20research%20studies%20have%20established,OSA%20may%20cause%20the%20issue.
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When I did the sleep study, I was diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea. The cause was said to be excess weight in the area of my face and neck area likely caused by prednisone
https://www.sleeptest.com/blog/post/drugs-that-can-lead-to-obstructive-sleep-apnea
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I have been off Prednisone for 3 years. People say my face looks like I have lost weight. I still need to lose more weight. My sleep apnea like so many other problems I had when I was on Prednisone has improved.
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I hated my CPAP machine at first but after I started using it all the time, I didn't need to get up every hour at night to pee.
This illustrates how one problem leads to another and another and another.. Interestingly, many of my problems are improving now that I'm not longer taking Prednisone.
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3 Reactions@dadcue
Thank you for your response!! I appreciate you sharing that info about the prednisone causing a fatter face because that has definitely happened to my husband. The prednisone does cause one thing after another after another. I'm so glad you're off of it!! My husband is down from 80 mg to 20 mg and still tapering so I'm hopeful. He's on Actemra to help the taper go more quickly. Fingers crossed!
Thanks also for sharing how you got used to sleeping with the CPAP machine. That is the one thing he's most afraid of thinking it will make him sleep less. I told him it might just have the total opposite affect. I'll share your story with him. It's always good coming from someone else with experience.
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1 ReactionDon't tell him about the vivid dreams I had when I first started wearing CPAP. I had dreams that I was SCUBA diving and someone was messing with my air supply. I used to do some SCUBA diving so I knew that I shouldn't panic. In my dreams, my air supply would return so I didn't actually wake up. I liked the dreams about SCUBA diving again. I don't have those dreams anymore and I miss having them. The reason why I think my sleep apnea is improving is because I don't have those SCUBA diving dreams anymore.
The CPAP is not always necessary! If your husband has his natural teeth, he can try a mouth appliance. My 81 year old sister switched to this and is amazed by it. If not, he should talk to his sleep specialist about EPAP, which is simple and non-invasive, about implants, and about other new treatments. After years of neglecting my apnea because there’s no way I would use CPAP, I finally scheduled a sleep study to address it because I learned about these effective alternatives.
The CPAP machine does not cure apnea, though it suspends its effects. But, though sleep doctors rarely tell you, sleep apnea can be mitigated, if not cured.
Tips for Mitigating OSA
Sleep on your side, not your back
https://www.sleepfoundation.org/sleeping-positions/best-sleeping-position-for-sleep-apnea
Don't tuck your chin
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3940806/
Learn and practice myofunctional therapy
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25348130/
Train your lips
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5699856/
Practice box breathing
https://www.sleepfoundation.org/sleep-hygiene/best-breathing-exercises-for-sleep
I am weaning myself from the machine and sleeping great late;ly.
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4 ReactionsThank you very much for this information. I will pass it on to my husband who is getting ready to do a home sleep study. He is not happy at the thought of having to use a c-pap machine. I’m all for trying alternatives.