Being a loud snorer may weaken people’s skulls, new research suggests. For unclear reasons, people with sleep apnoea have skulls that are up to 1.23mm thinner, a US study found today.
Researchers claim skull erosion of up to 1mm is sufficient to cause life-threatening spontaneous cerebrospinal fluid leak (sCSF-L), which occurs when the liquid that cushions and protects the brain and spinal cord flows away through a thin area.
This can lead to dementia-like symptoms, as well as coma, stroke and even death.
Sleep apnoea occurs when the walls of the throat relax and narrow during sleep, which interrupts breathing and is a key cause of snoring. It affects around 18 million adults in the US.
Being a loud snorer may weaken people’s skulls, new research suggests (stock)
Sleep apnoea ‘may contribute to skull thinning’
Study author Dr Rick Nelson, from the University of Indiana, said: ‘Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may mechanistically contribute to the development of disorders related to skull thinning, such as sCSF-L.
‘Spontaneous cerebrospinal fluid leak is associated with obesity, females ex and middle age.
‘Consistent with the rise in obesity in the United States, the rates of sCSF-L have more than doubled in the past decade.
‘Future studies are needed to identify the mechanism of how OSA may lead to skull thinning and how this may increase the risk of sCSF-L.
‘Patients with skull thinning on CT imaging may be at increased risk of OSA and those patients should be considered for OSA screening.’
The researchers scanned the skulls of 114 people aged between 40 and 60, of which 56 had moderate-to-severe sleep apnoea.
The findings were published in the journal JAMA Otolaryngology – Head Neck Surgery.
Researchers claim skull erosion of up to 1mm is sufficient to cause life-threatening spontaneous cerebrospinal fluid leak, which can cause crippling headaches (stock)
Snoring linked to Alzheimer’s
This comes after research released last July suggested snoring is linked to Alzheimer’s disease.
Difficulty breathing while asleep accelerates memory decline in people at-risk of the condition, a study found.
Daytime sleepiness and sleep apnoea are also linked to impaired attention, memory and thinking in people who are genetically susceptible to the degenerative condition, the research adds.
Researchers hope the findings will support sleep-based treatments in people at-risk of developing Alzheimer’s.
Study author Dr Susan Redline, from Harvard University, said: ‘Given the lack of effective treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, our results support the potential for sleep-disordered breathing screening and treatment as part of a strategy to reduce dementia risk.’