Sleeping on your stomach can be a risky practice. According to research published in “Neurology”, people who sleep on their stomachs and suffer from epilepsy may have an increased risk of sudden death, similar to sudden infant death syndrome.
“Sudden death is the leading cause of death in people with uncontrolled epilepsy and usually occurs during sleep,” says study author James Tao of the University of Chicago.
It is estimated that epilepsy affects about 50 million people worldwide, and it is those patients with tonic-clonic seizures, which affect the entire brain, who are most likely to die suddenly.
Researchers have reviewed 25 studies that included 253 cases of sudden and unexpected deaths in which body position was recorded. They found that 73% of the deceased died when sleeping on their stomachs, while 27% died in others.
In addition, after analyzing a subgroup of 88 people, the researchers found that those under 40 were four times more likely to be found face down in sudden death than those older than those older than that age.
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“We’re not sure why these postures are more common in younger people,” Tao acknowledges, speculating that it’s possible that these people slept alone. And he offers some advice: Those who sleep with someone who may have a tonic-clonic seizure should help them move or switch sides.
“As in cases of sudden infant death, adults are unable to wake up after a seizure, especially a general seizure,” says Tao.
“Our findings highlight that one possible strategy to prevent sudden unexpected death in epilepsy may be ‘better to roll over and sleep on your back or side.‘” In this sense, he recognizes that the use of alarms designed to detect seizures during sleep can also help prevent these deaths.
Source: ABC
