Repurposing existing medications to reduce the severity of sleep apnea
In an Australian world-first, researchers have successfully repurposed two existing medications to reduce the severity of sleep apnea in people by at least 30 per cent.
Affecting millions around the world, sleep apnea is a condition where the upper airway from the back of the nose to the throat closes repetitively during sleep, restricting oxygen intake and causing people to wake as often as 100 times or more per hour.
Those with untreated sleep apnea are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease, dementia and depression, and are two to four times more likely to crash a car than the general population.