Pulmonary and Physiology and Sleep Medicine team explore sleep apnoea findings

Studies undertaken by the Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital Pulmonary and Physiology and Sleep Medicine team found that the severity of sleep apnoea was independently associated with the likelihood of developing atrial fibrillation, an irregular heartbeat.

Pulmonary Physiology Consultant Dr Bhajan Singh said that sleep apnoea causes cardiovascular diseases, such as atrial fibrillation, due to physiological impacts during sleep, including low oxygen levels, sympathetic activation, large pressure changes in the chest, inflammation and spikes in blood pressure.

"Sleep apnoea treatment options include changes in lifestyle, weight reduction, changes in posture during sleep, continuous positive airways pressure (CPAP) therapy, oral appliances, upper airway surgery and implantable pacemakers," he said.

“Respiratory and sleep disorders are very common and are major causes of poor quality of life, motor vehicle and workplace accidents, poor physical health and hospitalisation.

“Personalised treatments of these disorders can dramatically improve the lives of many people, improve the safety of the community and take the pressure off our public hospitals.”

The Pulmonary and Physiology and Sleep Medicine team has based the findings on sleep studies of the diagnosis of sleep apnoea of more than 30,000 Western Australians since the 1980s.

The team is the only centre in Western Australia that provides specialty training in sleep medicine, as well as education to medical students, nurses and junior doctors.

They also conduct research locally and in collaboration with other centres around Australia and internationally.

Dr Singh said that the respiratory function testing and sleep disorders services are the largest and most comprehensive services of their kind across the state.

“We feel privileged to be entrusted by our patients with their health information to enable us to make discoveries that may be of direct benefit to them and other people across the world,” he said.

The team consists of medical specialists, scientists, nurses and administrative staff, and assesses all types of sleep disorders including insomnia, sleep apnoea, narcolepsy and movement disorders during sleep.