Sleep Apnea - Medical Conditions That Causes Secondary Sleep Disorders

Some medical conditions can actually cause secondary sleep disorders. Aside from that, prescription medications used to treat your underlying medical conditions will cause you to develop secondary sleeping disorders. Such medical conditions would include gastroesophageal reflux disease, endocrine problems, cardiovascular diseases, kidney disorders, neurological problems and mental disorders, bone and joint problems such as arthritis, and respiratory problems.

Problems in the cardiovascular system can lead to sleeping disorders. These cardiovascular diseases would include congestive heart failure and coronary artery disease. In coronary artery disease, fat deposits accumulate in the walls of the blood vessels. These fat deposits are called as atheromas; thus, the condition being called as atherosclerosis. This condition would cause impeded blood circulation which leads to coronary artery disease. This condition would often lead to sleeping disorders such as sleep apnea. As for congestive heart failure, the patient's heart is congested due to its inability to supply the requirements needed by the body; therefore, the heart's workload is increased making it congested. Organs such as the kidney and the lungs are also greatly affected. Because of these conditions, the patient has a greater risk of developing sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea.

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Endocrine disorders such as thyroid gland problems and diabetes may also cause secondary sleeping disorders. In general, Diabetes can be considered as a multisystem disorder because it has a big impact on different body processes. Such processes would include metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Usually, restless leg syndrome is the sleeping disorder that occurs in people with diabetes. On the other hand, the thyroid gland is responsible for regulating the hormones that affect the level of energy in a person. Once the thyroid gland function is disrupted, major problems will likely occur. If there is an excessive secretion of hormones by the thyroid gland, the person would have episodes of waking up in the wee hours due to night sweats and will also have sleeping difficulties.

Sleep Apnea - Medical Conditions That Causes Secondary Sleep Disorders

Aside from endocrine disorders, problems in the neurologic system can also lead to development of secondary sleeping disorders. Such neurologic problems would include epilepsy, Alzheimer's disease, stroke, and Parkinson's disease. Dementia and normal functioning is common among people with Alzheimer's disease. Sleep fragmentation can also occur among people with Alzheimer's disease. On the other hand, epilepsy is caused by electrical activities in the brain. Epileptic patients are at a greater risk to develop sleep disorder insomnia. As for Parkinson's disease, it is a dysfunction in the central nervous system. People with Parkinson's disease have motor problems and usually they suffer from tremors, muscle stiffness, posture problems, shuffling gait, and other normal activities. Aside from these motor problems, people with Parkinson's disease are also predisposed to REM sleep behavior disorder and sleep onset insomnia.

Those who have respiratory problems such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma are also predisposed to various sleeping disorders. Asthmatic patients have difficulties in breathing due to increased mucus production that causes airway obstruction as well as constriction and inflammation of the airway passages. Damage in the lungs that leads to difficulty in breathing is present in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The most common sleeping disorder that these people develop are sleep fragmentation and often times, insomnia.

Mental problems such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, anxiety, and seasonal affective disorders are also prone to develop sleeping problems. These sleeping disorders would include sleep fragmentation and insomnia.

A condition called gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is present among people who frequently experience acid reflux. Usually, the food that was previously ingested would regurgitate causing damage to the mucosal linings of the esophagus. For GERD, sleep fragmentation is likely to happen.

Problems in kidney functioning is troublesome because waste products are not eliminated. There will also be imbalances in the salt levels and water levels leading to serious problems like edema. Restless leg syndrome and insomnia are common among these people.

It is very evident that people with bone and joint problems are suffering from insomnia due to the fact that they are experiencing pain. An example of joint problem would be arthritis.

Secondary sleeping disorder is the term that is used to describe people who have sleep disorders caused by underlying medical conditions. When this happens, the best way would be to treat the medical condition first prior to treating the sleeping disorder itself.

Sleep Apnea - Medical Conditions That Causes Secondary Sleep Disorders

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Thyroid Disorders Affect The Entire Body, Including Poor Sleep Due to Sleep Apnea

The thyroid is a small butterfly shaped gland located in your neck. Though it weighs only about an ounce, the thyroid gland has some very important functions to carry out that have a major impact on one's health. It maintains body temperature, controls the rate of energy production (including oxygen use and basal metabolic rate), regulates the skeletal and muscular growth of children and heavily influences brain chemistry and thus brain function.

Additionally the thyroid gland has major influence in all of these areas:

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• Enhances a portion of the nervous system called the sympathetic nervous system.
• Promotes breakdown of blood sugar, mobilizes fats, essential for protein synthesis, enhances the liver's synthesis of cholesterol.
• Promotes normal adult nervous system function and mood.
• Promotes normal functioning of the heart.
• Promotes normal muscular growth and function.
• Promotes normal GI motility and tone; increases secretion of digestive juices, particularly that of the gallbladder and the stomach.
• Promotes normal female reproductive ability and lactation.
• Promotes normal hydration and secretory activity of the skin.

Thyroid Disorders Affect The Entire Body, Including Poor Sleep Due to Sleep Apnea

The thyroid gland takes iodine, which is found in many foods, and converts it into thyroid hormones thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3). It is estimated that Iodine makes up about 0.00004% of total human body weight and iodine is found in highest concentration in the thyroid the gland cells. These cells combine iodine and the amino acid tyrosine and hydrogen peroxide (using an enzyme called thyroid peroxidase or TPO) to make the hormones T4 (thyroxin) and T3 (triiodotyrosine), which are then released into the blood stream and transported throughout the body attached to a protein called Thyroid Binding Globulin (TBG).

It is important to understand that T4 is inactive thyroid hormone and about 93% of the thyroid's production of hormone is T4. Only about 7% of the hormone the thyroid gland produces is active thyroid hormone (T3). The 93% inactive T4 hormone must be converted to T3 in order for this active hormone to generate all the important effects in the body. 60% of T4 is converted to T3 in the liver and 20% is converted into another inactive thyroid hormone called reverse T3 (rT3). Another 20% of T4 is converted to T3 Sulfate (T3S) and triiodothyroacetic acid (T3AC) and is acted upon by the digestive tract bacteria (assuming your digestive tract is in healthy balance of bacteria) and fully converted to T3. Any remaining T4 hormone that wasn't transformed into T3 or inactive T3 forms will be converted into T3 by the peripheral tissues (such as in brain cells, kidneys and muscle cells).

Only the active T3 hormone exerts is controlling effect on metabolism and all the other functions it governs or modulates. The thyroid is the master gland of your metabolism and so it has a very important job. People who suffer from thyroid malfunction experience many different kinds of health complications affecting a multitude of systems in their body. Every cell in your body had thyroid hormone receptor sites so that little gland affects the function of every cell in your body!

An estimated 27 million Americans suffer from thyroid dysfunction, half of which go undiagnosed. Women are at a and estimated 24 times greater risk of developing thyroid malfunction and this risk increases with age and also for those who have thyroid dysfunction within their family.

When the thyroid gland begins to malfunction many doctors neglect to ask the very important question of why. Adrenal problems, hormonal imbalances, poor blood sugar metabolism, irregular immune function and gut infections are all signals that the thyroid might be depressed.

Many times replacement hormones are used in an effort to wipe out symptoms without understanding what has caused the thyroid to malfunction in the fist place. More often than not the relief these drugs provide is short-lived, or never really works, because in order to really address the health of the very important thyroid gland, the systems of the entire body must be taken into account. So even though you are taking medications for thyroid dysfunction you may still have problems with your thyroid (even though your TSH levels are in the normal range). For example you can have problems with how the thyroid hormones are transported or how inactive T4 hormone is converted to active T3 hormone. You may have issues with the end effect the thyroid hormone is intended to have at the cell level.

Here is a List of The Influences of Thyroid Hormones on Physiological and Metabolic Function

• Bone: Deficiency of thyroid hormones lead to a decrease in bone development and an abnormal architecture of the bone that is created. Generally, a functionally low (which means low but not flagged as of yet) serum calcium is noted in hypothyroidism. Elevated thyroid hormones causes an increased serum calcium, as it pulls calcium from the bone, leading to increased risk of pathological fractures of the spine and weight-bearing joints.
• Gastrointestinal Function: Transit time is affected directly by thyroid hormones as is absorption of nutrients.
• Male Hormones: Hypothyroidism has been linked to diminished libido and impotence. Although this condition is more rare in men, it must be considered in treating these conditions.
• Liver and Gallbladder Function: Low thyroid function caused decreased liver clearance and gall bladder congestion through thickening of the bile, often also associated with an elevation of cholesterol. Unfortunately, also often treated with cholesterol lowering drugs while the thyroid function is the cause of the elevated cholesterol.
• Body Composition: As you may know all too well, low thyroid function causes an inability to lose weight. This is caused by a slowed conversion of glucose and fat into energy, and altering the way Human Growth Hormone (HGH) is metabolized in the body.
• Blood Sugar Regulation: Low thyroid slows the insulin response to glucose following eating carbohydrates or sugar and it also slows glucose uptake into cells and tissues, and slows absorption of glucose from the intestinal tract. In other words, your entire energy production system is slowed. It is quite confounding to your body and brain, in that the glucose is in the blood, but the tissues are not able to absorb it. This really confuses the pituitary gland and adrenal glands, resulting in a "stress physiology," even if life is good.
• Cholesterol: As mentioned earlier, low thyroid increases your cholesterol and triglycerides, so your doctor tells you your diet is poor. You become even more strict in your diet, and the tissue starvation (low glucose, low energy) gets worse, which makes the stress physiology worse, which makes your cholesterol higher, which prompts your doctor to put you on cholesterol medication, which interferes with energy production, which further stresses your physiology...whew! You are frustrated!
• Depression: Low thyroid impairs the production of stimulating neurotransmitters, which are the chemicals that antidepressants work on. Low stimulating neurotransmitters leaves you, as one of my professors described, feeling "lower than a snakes belly."
• Female Hormones: Low thyroid changes the way estrogen is metabolized in the body, shifting toward an estrogen metabolite that has been proven to increase the risk of breast cancer.
• Stress: Low thyroid slows the elimination of the stress hormone cortisol, which leaves you feeling stressed out, not because of "stress," but because the stress hormone can't be removed efficiently.
• Detoxification: Low thyroid slows an enzyme critical for metabolic biotransformation, or detoxification, the process by which the body binds and removes all environmental chemicals, and normal byproducts of metabolism, including hormones. "Toxicity" further slows your metabolism, and leads to headaches and other toxic symptoms.
• Digestion: Low thyroid reduces the release of Gastrin, which determines the output of hydrochloric acid in the stomach, leading to poor protein digestion, sour stomach, and GERD.
• Thermoregulation: Regulation of body temperature is affected by low thyroid, resulting in hot flashes and night sweats, which is especially prominent in perimenopausal women. This is often blamed on estrogen dropping, but may be directly caused by low thyroid.
• PMS and Infertility: Low thyroid affects the progesterone receptors, making them less sensitive to progesterone, which feels like low progesterone, although the progesterone levels may be normal. Since the activity of progesterone is diminished, the health of the uterus is insufficient for implantation in the second half of the female cycle, leading to difficulties getting pregnant and PMS. Low thyroid also reduces sex hormone binding proteins, leading to an increase in estrogen activity.
• Anemia: Low thyroid, as mentioned affects protein metabolism, which then lowers the red blood cell mass, which carries oxygen to tissues for metabolism of energy. Yes, another mechanism for feeling lousy.
• Homocysteine: Low thyroid slows a process called methylation, often evidenced by elevated serum levels of homocysteine. Elevated homocysteine in the blood has been proven as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative disorders, and cervical dysplasia.

Due to the effect the thyroid hormones have on so many systems of the body, including metabolism and nervous system function, a minimum of two mechanisms can lead to sleep apnea. Number one is the weight gain that typically occurs about the face and often, an enlarged thyroid gland, which can physically impede airflow through the airway, leading to sleep apnea. In addition the reduction in proper thyroid hormone leads to impairment of the part of the brain stem that is in charge of the cardio-respiratory centers, thus leading to abnormal breathing patterns during sleep. Weakened respiratory muscles due to hypothyroid myopathy can be a third cause for sleep apnea.

As you can see, living with low thyroid has far reaching effects on your health and function. There are as many as 24 published mechanisms for thyroid function to be impaired. Visit http://www.helpmychronicpain.com/Shelby-Township-Thyroid-Answers/ to become informed about how to get a functional diagnosis, that truly gets to the root of your thyroid health challenges so you can regain the zest in your life and sleep better.

Thyroid Disorders Affect The Entire Body, Including Poor Sleep Due to Sleep Apnea

Dr. Karl R.O.S. Johnson is a chiropractic physician and medical writer in Shelby Township, Michigan. Dr. Johnson's areas of expertise include chiropractic, functional medicine, functional neurology and spinal rehabilitation. He is the author of the "Ultimate Strategy" series of eBooks on the topics of fibromyalgia, balance disorders, migraine and other debilitating headaches and well as unresolved thyroid symptoms. For more information and to receive my FREE informative thyroid answers DVD, free report and eBook please visit ShelbyThyroidAnswers.com or call 586-731-8840.

Sleeping Disorders

There are various medical and psychological reasons which can and do invariably bring about sleeping disorders. A sleeping disorder may begin rather unobtrusively with sleep patterns being disrupted only marginally at first. However, if the cause of the disruption is not approached and dealt with sooner rather than later it can become a far more serious problem. In some instances sleeping disorders can also disrupt the everyday workings of a person's physical, mental and emotional activity.

There are many physical conditions which can cause sleeping disorders, such as 'Hypopnea Syndrome' - a condition where the person's respiratory rate becomes abnormally shallow while they are sleeping. Another example is 'Obstructive Sleep Apnea' - which is most commonly due to some kind of obstruction in the airway.

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To discover if there are any bio-physiological changes occurring during sleep a Poly-Somno-Graphy (PSG), also referred to as a 'sleep study', might be carried out. A PSG records various functions while the person is sleeping: such as brain and muscle activity, rapid eye movement (which indicates dramatic dreams - night terrors), heart rhythm (ECG) and skeletal-muscle activity (EMG). If more complex data is needed the PSG will either be supplemented or replaced by an Actigraphy. These tests can diagnose which sleeping problem is causing the situation, as well as rule out most of the more common sleeping orders. Insomnia is usually the diagnosis if there is a chronic disruption in sleep patterns occurs and no other cause can be found.

Waking up un-rested and non-responsive can indicate a sleeping disorder and insomnia (defined as the inability to obtain an adequate, good night's sleep, either because of difficulties falling asleep, staying asleep, or both) is indicated. Other commonly diagnosed sleeping disorders include Periodic Limb Movement Disorder (PLMD) and Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS). With PLMD a person will suddenly and involuntarily jerk their arms or legs while sleeping. RLS brings on a slightly different sensation: with RLS the individual feels the irresistible need to move/shake their legs. Often these disorders will be suffered concurrently.

During 2006, the United States Department of Health carried out a study upon one thousand American teens aged 13 to 16 years. Incredibly 11% of them were diagnosed as suffering from Insomnia. In 2007 another study by them revealed that women are almost one and a half times more likely to suffer insomnia and that around 64 million Americans are dealing with this condition every year. That figure alone is enough to cause anyone sleepless nights!

Sleeping Disorders

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