{"id":1686,"date":"2024-04-26T13:27:11","date_gmt":"2024-04-26T13:27:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sleepdunwoody.com\/blog\/?p=1686"},"modified":"2024-06-11T13:31:39","modified_gmt":"2024-06-11T13:31:39","slug":"can-untreated-sleep-apnea-be-fatal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sleepdunwoody.com\/blog\/2024\/04\/26\/can-untreated-sleep-apnea-be-fatal\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Untreated Sleep Apnea Be Fatal?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The current estimate is that over 20 million Americans are struggling with sleep apnea<\/a>, but every major healthcare organization agrees that the real number is likely much larger because roughly 80% of cases go undiagnosed. While it\u2019s well-documented that sleep apnea is terrible for your health, can it actually kill you?<\/em> The answer is actually quite nuanced and shows that being tired all the time isn\u2019t the worst thing the condition can cause.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Can Sleep Apnea Kill You?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

To answer the biggest question first\u2014no, there have been no cases where sleep apnea was deemed the cause of death. While it causes someone to stop breathing throughout the night, the body tends to always wake up and restart respiration if nothing else gets in the way. However, it\u2019s been shown time and time again in research that sleep apnea can directly <\/em>contribute to things that are consistently fatal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Sleep Apnea Can Be Deadly<\/h2>\n\n\n\n