I came across this article today discussing Sleep Apnea and it's link to memory loss. Although we've known for quite a while that there are many disorders linked to Sleep Apnea, I find this extremely interesting as a a number of patients I am treating have noted "forgetfulness" as a recent event. I originally thought that it was a simple case of "lack of sleep = a tired mind", but I stand corrected!

If you have any questions about oral appliances to treat Sleep Apnea, call us for more information anytime!

Sleep Apnea Linked to Memory Loss

Study finds disorder shrinks brain cells much the way alcohol, Alzheimer's do

Posted June 11, 2008

WEDNESDAY, June 11 (HealthDay News) -- People with sleep apnea show tissue loss in brain regions that help store memory, a University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) study shows.

"Our findings demonstrate that impaired breathing during sleep can lead to serious brain injury that disrupts memory and thinking," principal investigator Ronald Harper, a professor of neurobiology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, said in a prepared statement.

People with sleep apnea stop breathing and awaken repeatedly during the night, leading to chronic daytime fatigue and memory and concentration problems. Research has linked sleep apnea to an increased risk of stroke, heart disease and diabetes.

In this study, the UCLA team used MRI to scan the brains of sleep apnea patients. The researchers focused on brain structures called mammillary bodies, located on the underside of the brain.

The study found that the mammillary bodies of the 43 sleep apnea patients were almost 20 percent smaller than those in 66 people without sleep apnea. The results will be published in the June 27 issue of Neuroscience Letters.

Repeated drops in oxygen experienced by sleep apnea patients may lead to brain injury, Harper suggested. He noted that lack of oxygen during an apnea episode can cause brain cell death.

"The reduced size of the mammillary bodies suggests that they've suffered a harmful event resulting in sizable cell loss. The fact that patients' memory problems continue despite treatment for their sleep disorder implies a long-lasting brain injury," Harper said.

"The findings are important, because patients suffering from memory loss from other syndromes, such as alcoholism or Alzheimer's disease, also show shrunken mammillary bodies," lead author Rajesh Kumar, an assistant researcher in neurobiology, said in a prepared statement.

"Physicians treat memory loss in alcoholic patients with massive amounts of thiamine, or vitamin B1. We suspect that the dose helps dying cells to recover, enabling the brain to use them again," Kumar said.

He and Harper plan to study whether taking supplemental vitamin B1 can help restore memory in sleep apnea patients. The vitamin moves glucose into cells, which prevents their death from oxygen starvation.

For the full article, click here

Sonicare and E. Coli?

New University Study Shows E. Coli, Mold and High Amounts of Other Bacteria Growing in Electric Toothbrushes; In Some Cases, Over 100 Times More Bacteria than their Manual Counterparts

Some of you may have recently heard the buzz about this study, where a University of Arizona study compared the bacterial contamination of manual vs. electric toothbrushes. The result was that electric toothbrushes contained 100 times the amount of bacteria than that of their manual counterpart.

Does this mean you should throw out your beloved Sonicare???? ABSOLUTELY NOT!

First and foremost, E. Coli for the most part is harmless, and is a part of our normal bacterial flora. In fact, E. Coli normally colonizes an infants gastrointestinal tract within 40 hours of birth! However, through the natural biological process of mutation, some strains can evolve into the nasty pathogenic strains that we see plastered all over the news.

For those of you who own Sonicare's, I'm sure you have all looked under the head to see that nasty goop that often builds up over time. That...my friends, is the result of oral bacteria colonizing in the dark damp crevices of your toothbrush! Now, don't panic. This doesn't mean that you're going to die from E. Coli contamination - just follow a few simple procedures to make sure your brush head is always clean.

1.) If the underside of the head is really slimy and dirty - switch it out.

2.) After each use, simply unscrew the head and rinse it under clean running water for 10-20 seconds.

3.) Dip it in Listerine or any other antiseptic mouthwash.

4.) If you've got a steam or UV sterilizer...use it.

5.) Shake it dry.

That's it! HAPPY BRUSHING!