The High Price of Untreated Sleep Apnea
After receiving your diagnosis of sleep apnea, your next step is to find a continuous positive airway pressure system to start treatment. CPAP therapy is effective in treating the sleep disorder and preventing associated health consequences, like heart disease and diabetes. But, a quick look on any medical supply website is daunting. Choosing a CPAP machine and mask feels complicated, foreign, and expensive. The cost alone may make you want to forgo treatment altogether. Not so fast. While starting sleep apnea therapy may seem costly at first, the price of untreated sleep apnea is much higher.
Cardiovascular Disease
The leading cause of death in America? Heart disease. Also known as cardiovascular disease, heart disease is any condition which affects the heart or blood vessels. Not only dangerous, heart disease is costly. One in six dollars spent on healthcare pays for heart disease treatment. Do you have a robust savings? A heart attack could cost you as much as one million dollars.
The treatment and management of heart disease is expensive too. While the amount varies per person, if you’ve got heart disease, you’ll be shelling out for medications, diagnostic testing, and frequent visits to the cardiologist’s office. Still think a CPAP system is too expensive?
Diabetes
It turns out that sleep apnea and type 2 diabetes are closely related. About fifty to sixty percent of patients with diabetes also have sleep apnea. What’s the connection? Excess glucose related to stress and sleep deprivation associated with sleep apnea. Type 2 diabetes is expensive and costs sufferers of the disease anywhere from eight thousand to thirteen thousand dollars a year.
Your Career Might Be Suffering Too
If you’re not treating your sleep apnea, you’re putting your career at risk. Untreated sleep apnea causes actual brain damage which means that you’re feeling exhausted during the day, are more forgetful than ever, and are likely having trouble concentrating. None of these issues are compatible with great work There’s no better way to get yourself into financial hardship than losing your job over your health.
Getting CPAP Therapy Started
Still intimidated over purchasing a CPAP system? Please consider contacting the sleep experts at Advanced Sleep Therapy. We’d love to help you understand your insurance plan and find you a CPAP system that’s cost-effective and just right for your personal treatment.
