Hidden Dangers of Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a breathing disorder secondary to collapsing upper airways while sleeping. The collapse leads to a significant decrease or a complete cessation of airflow despite an ongoing effort to breathe. OSA leads to poor sleep quantity and quality, which, in turn, causes temporary cognitive impairments. Systematic manifestations of OSA can be seen as hypertension, arrhythmias, heart failure, obesity, and worsening of existing pulmonary or cardiac conditions. Severe untreated OSA also leads to significant sleep deprivation, which may eventually lead to sleep attacks. We present a case of a sleep attack leading to a motor vehicle accident that was presumptively diagnosed as syncope. During hospitalization, workup revealed that the patient had very severe OSA. He was treated with a continuous positive airway pressure device, which improved his daytime sleepiness with no new episodes of sleep attacks.