New York: Brazilian researchers have reported that curing nighttime breathing problem, obstructive sleep apnea; with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) have a positive effect on early symptoms of atherosclerosis.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) takes place when the delicate tissues behind the throat continually crash during sleep, temporarily cutting off respiration. It has been related to coronary failure and cerebrovascular accident, and both relations seem to be fueled through effects on atherosclerosis. Whether effectual treatment of OSA would lessen the plaque burden, however, was unclear.

Dr. Luciano F. Drager and co-workers from University of Sao Paulo Medical School evaluated transformations in the thickness of the neck vein and other parametric quantities in 24 patients with harsh OSA randomized to have CPAP or no cure for last 4 months. Considered the most efficacious therapy for OSA, CPAP needs wearing a mask through which the CPAP device deliver pressurized air to keep the air ducts open.

The control group experienced no changes in any of the parameters measured during follow-up. In the CPAP group, by contrast, the investigators documented reductions in the thickness of neck arteries and in the stiffness of the arteries.

The CPAP group also saw strong reductions in CRP, an indicator of inflammation linked with an augmented risk of cardiovascular disease and catecholamines, compounds, which compress blood vessels, raise heart rate and improve blood pressure.

Drager told, “The magnitude of improvement on validated markers of atherosclerosis after CPAP is in some aspects comparable to that observed for statins used in patients with dyslipidemia. However, in opposite to the main effect of statins promoting significant lipid-lowering effects, we did not observe any significant reductions in lipids but in markers of inflammation and sympathetic activation.”

Drager monished that more analyzes are required to decide if CPAP slows down the development of atherosclerosis in OSA patients.