Immediately following my c-spine fusion (c-spine 3,4,5 &6) I developed symptoms of sleep apnea. It took me a year and a half to convince any of my docs of my situation. After being hospitalized after collapsing my first sleep study was performed and I was diagnosed with severOSA. Has anyone else experienced this same thing?

You've posted you were diagnosed with severe *OSA* - obstructive sleep apnea.  Is that correct?  Or were you diagnosed with mixed or central apnea?  Do you have your sleep study results and could post them here?

Blessings,
--pseudonym

I've had spinal fusion of the neck and I never thought about it, but after then is when I started feeling like my neck was "full", even when I was underweight.  Did they go in through the front of your neck?  That's how they did mine.  Makes me wonder about scar tissue or if they moved things around that would make us more prone to OA.  My surgery was 10 years ago so the severity of my OA problem has been much more recent but I still felt odd in my neck after the surgery.

I too have had disc fusion about 10-15 years ago. My understanding of point of entry is that Ortho Dr's approach from the rear, Nuerologists (surgeons) from the throat. Mine was a throat entry which is the more dangerous of the 2.

Sure, ,my neck felt differently afterwards. My fusion was done with a cadaver bone and for almost a year afterwards, I would hear and feel the bone being internally shaped and grinded to fit in with my existing spine structure. For about 2 years, I lost head turning mobility, but gradually, as the bone reshaped, my neck movement is now normal again.

In my case, I seriously doubt my disc problems had anything to do with my now having sleep apnea. I'm guessing you also had a throad entry and you are thinking that because things were shifted/moved around during surgery that this created the obstruction? The reason I say I doubt this was in my case is because of all the reading I've done on OSA since I was diagnosed last month.  I had many of the symptoms long before I had the disc surgery.


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I had c-spine fusion in June of 2006.  I cannot remember any symptoms of apnea prior to that time at all.  I have had fleeting thoughts over the past 18 months about whether or not the two could be related.  The surgery was done through the front of my throat also and three levels of my spine were fused.  

I too don't think it has anything to do with the fusion but could it have something to to with scar tissue or changes in the neck for some reason?

My c-spine fusion was from the anterior (neck) approach. I required swallow therapy following surgery and still have some difficulty. (The surgeon had warned me of a possible difference in swallowing, singing, speaking...) As they removed the sterile field following the fusion the docs noticed my IV had failed and my arm was as big as my thigh and grey and purple in color. For a while they thought they would have to amputate my hand and/or arm. This was not necessary but I did go through additional surgeries (and almost 2 years of physical therapy to regain even partial use of my hand and arm). I have wondered if the three intibations within a 48 hour period contributed to the sleeping and swallowing problems. Prior to the third surgery I heard the surgeon warning the surgical staff to be cautious as they intibated me. My last sleep study began with my CPAP set at 6cm and increased to 16cms Total sleep time: 7 hours 55 min. Non-REM sleep time: 6 hours 52 min. REM sleep: 1 hour. awake during sleep for 46 min. Sleep architecture: abnormal w/slow wave sleep. Stage 1 sleep: 32% of monitered time. Stage 2 Sleep: 47% of monitered time. Stage 3 sleep: 0%. Stage 4 sleep: 0% REM sleep: 12%. Latency to first REM period is 102 min. arousal index 15. While on CPAP for the entire test patient still has a apnea/hypopnea index of 19 with four central apneas and 144 obstructive hypopneas. Fairly good response to CPAP setting of 16 cm. I have been using a BIPAP (respironics M series w/ humidifier) with improvement since this study. However, I am still struggling with headaches, fatigue, mental confusion and anxiety. It took months to get me adjusted to the increasing increases in cm setting and I am now at 16 cm and ready for another study.