CPAP Therapy Can Help Treat Nightmares in Veterans with PTSD and Sleep Apnea

A new study shows that continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) may help veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) see a reduction in nightmares and sleep disturbances.

According to study findings, this means that the number of nightmares seen week fell significantly with CPAP use, and even reduced nightmare frequency after starting the treatments.

"Patients with PTSD get more motivated to use CPAP once they get restful sleep without frequent nightmares, and their compliance improves" said principal investigator Sadeka Tamanna, MD, MPH, via a press release, the medical director of the Sleep Disorders Laboratory at G.V. (Sonny) VA Medical Center in Jackson, Miss.

The study examined a retrospective review of medical records to identify OSA patients who also carried a PTSD diagnosis and who were treated in a VA medical center sleep clinic between May 2011 and May 2012. The number of nightmares per week before treatment and up to six months following CPAP treatments were extracted and treatment compliance was determined from CPAP memory cards.

"One out of six veterans suffers from PTSD, which affects their personal, social and productive life," said Tamanna, via the release. "Nightmares are one of the major symptoms that affect their daily life, and prevalence of OSA is also high among PTSD patients and can trigger their nightmares."

According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, obstructive sleep apnea is a common sleep illness affecting up to seven percent of men and five percent of women. It involves repetitive episodes of complete or partial upper airway obstruction occurring during sleep despite an ongoing effort to breathe. The most effective treatment option for OSA is CPAP, which helps keep the airway open by providing a stream of air through a mask that is worn during sleep.

The National Center for PTSD of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs states that PTSD symptoms such as nightmares or flashbacks sually begin soon after a traumatic event, but may not appear in full force for months or years later. Symptoms that last longer than four weeks can cause great distress or interfere with daily life and may be a sign of PTSD if it is still undiagnosed.

If you think you have PTSD or know someone that does, call 1-800-273-8255 at the Veterans Crisis Line.

More findings for the study can be found online in the journal SLEEP.