Can Weight Loss Surgery Treat My Sleep Apnea?

Sleep apnea is a common disorder that affects millions of Americans nationwide. People with sleep apnea stop breathing multiple times throughout the night, forcing their body to wake them up into a semi-conscious state in order to take a proper breath. These intervals of non-breathing and waking can happen hundreds of times a night, depriving you of necessary sleep and dangerously lowering your body’s oxygen levels.

The Role of Obesity in Sleep Apnea

Sleep apnea can be caused by several different factors, including the natural structure of your throat tissue, the size of your neck and tongue, and the size of your jaw. However, many doctors believe that obesity is a major factor in a large number of sleep apnea cases.

When you are overweight, your body can carry excess fat deposits in your throat and neck area. This extra tissue can place pressure on your airway, causing it to collapse at night and interfere with your breathing.

Obese patients with untreated sleep apnea are vulnerable to several serious health risks, including:

• Stroke
• Heart attack
• High blood pressure
• Memory loss
• Premature aging

If you are obese and suffering from obstructive sleep apnea, weight loss will be a key component of your sleep apnea treatment. For many patients, diet and exercise alone help in significantly reducing their sleep apnea symptoms. However, others may need a more aggressive weight loss strategy in order to successfully treat their sleep apnea.

How Weight Loss Surgery Can Help

If no other treatment method has eased your sleep apnea symptoms, weight loss surgery may be the solution you’ve been looking for. By helping you quickly and efficiently lose a large amount of weight, bariatric surgery can reduce the amount of pressure on your throat and neck at night, allowing you to breathe more freely.

It is important to remember that sleep apnea does not only occur in obese individuals. Someone who is underweight can also suffer from sleep apnea. With this in mind, weight loss surgery alone may not completely cure your condition, since other underlying issues may also contribute to your sleep apnea.

However, the majority of bariatric patients with obstructive sleep apnea experience significant relief from their symptoms as they lose weight after surgery – even if their sleep apnea is not entirely eliminated. Be sure to work with an experienced sleep apnea specialist in your area to determine the best treatment method for your needs.

If you have further questions about sleep apnea and weight loss surgery, please contact us today to schedule a consultation with experienced Los Angeles weight loss surgeon Dr. Shyam Dahiya. We also serve patients in the Irvine and Riverside areas of California.