Dubai insomniacs warned of stroke risk

Dubai’s population needs urgent awareness on the correlation between sleep disorders and serious illnesses, according to leading sleep therapists.

In a media statement today, Saudi German Hospital-Dubai shared research that affirms that insomniacs face double the chances of suffering a heart attack or stroke, and similar patterns have emerged with other sleep disorders.

According to Dr Shadi Sharifi: Sleep Medicine Specialist and Neurophysiologist at Saudi German Hospital-Dubai: “The biggest myth is that most people think ‘sleep disorder’ automatically means someone who can’t fall asleep. On the contrary, you can sleep for 8 hours and still suffer from sleep disorders – because what counts isn’t just the quantity of sleep, but the quality.

“For instance some people have a biological clock that runs longer than 24 hours; others have Obstructive Sleep Apnea which makes them temporarily stop breathing while asleep. Such disorders open the gateway for more common conditions like heart problems. Therefore to show Dubai how seriously we’re taking this problem, our hospital has established a new hi-tech laboratory specializing exclusively in sleep disorders.”

Among other features, the hospital’s new Sleep Disorder lab utilises the ‘Epworth Sleepiness Scale’ to evaluate the patient's chances of falling asleep, on a scale of 0 to 3. The patient's score determines what sort of therapy is best suited to treat their disorder.

Additionally, proving a consistent drive for advanced technology, Saudi German Hospital – Dubai has recently acquired a polysomnography machine. This progressive acquisition is a series of tests performed on sleeping patients. These tests assist in diagnosing multiple parasomnias like sleepwalking, sleeptalking and hallucinations. The device functions by attaching electrodes to sleeping patients’ scalps (EEG) or chest (EKG) and in some instances, arms and legs to monitor movement.

The growing incidence of sleep disorders has been attributed to several factors; such as the high obesity rate, which increases respiratory problems during sleep and in turn leads to disorders like sleep apnea.

Another factor is the hectic demands of today’s working schedule; for instance part of the labor force works in night shifts - and even those working “normal” daytime hours often stretch into overtime. Meanwhile a growing proportion of professionals are travelling more frequently, leading to jetlag which in turn triggers more sleep problems.

The more extreme disorders include sleep paralysis and narcolepsy – in which a person may suddenly fall asleep even in mid-sentence or mid-walk, and collapse while engaged in dangerous activities. Research now suggests that narcolepsy may run in the family.

Reiterating the importance of research into sleep disorders, Dr Reem Osman, CEO of Saudi German Hospital-Dubai stated: “For a long time, people assumed that sleep problems would only cause mild annoyances like drowsiness, headaches and sluggishness.

“But we now know that, aside from the obvious dangers of falling asleep while driving or operating heavy machinery, the repercussions of sleep disorders extend to heart failure, heartburn, stroke, and can also trigger psychological effects like personality disorders, depression and memory deficits. To prevent all this, our advanced new sleep disorder laboratory aims to give back a “good night’s sleep” to Dubai’s long-suffering sleep disorder victims. Given that we spend about a third of our lives asleep, they can now reclaim their lives and make their dreams come true.”

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