Sleep Apnea Rising Quickly Among Active-Duty Military
A new study has found that the rate of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) has skyrocketed among active-duty military members during the last 14 years, leaving experts to wonder why the sleep disorder is becoming so much more common among this particular group of otherwise healthy individuals.
The new sleep apnea study, which will appear in the next issue of Sleep, a respected sleep research journal, compared medical codes that represent diagnosis of sleep apnea or insomnia in active-duty Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force personnel from 2005 to 2019. Led by The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio), researchers found that during that time period, insomnia increased among the military by 45 times, while obstructive sleep apnea rates increased by 30 times.
Information about sleep apnea among the Coast Guard or Space Force were not included in the study.
This was the first study of its kind to focus on so many branches of the military and to use health records instead of self reporting.
“Other studies have been conducted in the past, but those were based more on self-reported surveys or focused on a single branch of the military. No one has studied these sleep disorders in multiple branches of the military before, based on universally used diagnostic medical codes from health records,” said principal investigator Vincent Mysliwiec, MD, a sleep medicine physician, professor of research at UT Health San Antonio, and a retired U.S. Army colonel.
The results are alarming because active military members often do not have the risk factors of the greater population of sleep apnea sufferers: they tend to be younger, healthier, and more physically fit than the OSA population at large. The profile of the most commonly diagnosed military person with sleep apnea was partnered, male, white, a higher-ranking, and age 40 or older.
Active-duty women were found to have much lower rates of sleep apnea and insomnia than their male counterparts, although researchers aren’t sure whether this is because they suffer less from sleep disorders in the military, or because the don’t get diagnosed or treated for their sleep disorders.
Why is sleep apnea on the rise in the military?
While the study seemed to find conclusive evidence that more and more military personnel were suffering from sleep apnea while on active duty, it did not reveal why the rate of OSA is skyrocketing right now.
However, the study’s authors, who have extensive experience studying the health of the active military population, have a few ideas and educated guesses.
The first? Deployments lead to sleep disorders as well as other serious health problems that have been correlated with sleep disturbances, like PTSD and TBI.
“While military deployments were not evaluated in this epidemiological study, previous research has shown a strong correlation between deployments and sleep disorders, and deployments combined with other chronic health conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury,” said study co-author Dr. Alan Peterson, a professor of psychiatry and the chief of the Division of Behavioral Medicine at UT Health San Antonio.
The theory that issues like TBI and PTSD could be linked to sleep apnea is supported by the fact that the study found that more active Army members struggled with sleep apnea and insomnia than those in the other branches of the military.
“In the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, there were longer and more frequent deployments between 2008 and 2012. The Army typically had the longest and most frequent deployments—21 months—compared to 12 to 16 months for the other services,” he explained.
On the other hand, service people who were in the Army could have also had more sleep apnea diagnoses because they were simply more likely to get an easy diagnosis from a large and well-equipped Army medical center—while Marine and Navy members would have a harder time accessing doctors and treatments.
“While we don’t know yet exactly why Army personnel were more likely to be diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea or insomnia, another factor besides deployments could be that Army personnel have greater access to large medical centers, which are typically located on Army posts. In contrast, Marines rely on Navy medical facilities that may not be where they are serving,” Dr. Peterson said.
Not only that, but Army members had recently been educated about sleep disorders. In so many instances, people don’t get diagnosed with sleep apnea simply because they don’t know what it is or the harm it causes. Since Army members knew better, they might have sought more care.
“Another factor that could have influenced the results is that the Army was the first service to institute a service-wide education program on military sleep practices. Having greater access to medical facilities and the Army’s emphasis on education about sleep disorders may have resulted in more soldiers recognizing their sleep disturbances and seeking appropriate treatment,” Dr. Peterson said.
But the most important thing to remember in this study is that more and more active military are getting diagnosed with sleep apnea, and that’s vital to know, especially since sleep apnea is associated with daytime fatigue and cognitive issues—things that we absolutely don’t want those protecting our country to suffer from.
“Overall, this study provides a comprehensive overview of the two most common sleep disorders in the U.S. military and contributes to sleep research that opens the door to learning more about the causes for these diagnoses. This will lead to more targeted prevention strategies and more effective treatments,” concluded Dr. Peterson.
Ending sleep apnea with sleep apnea surgery
While some people with OSA find a solution with CPAP, others either do not wish to or cannot use a forced air machine nightly to control their sleep apnea symptoms. Others don’t find that CPAP works for them.
Sleep apnea surgery may be the ideal solution. To find out more, take our sleep apnea self evaluation or contact us today.