Sleep, sleep loss, and breathing.

Sleep and sleep loss have remarkable effects on breathing. Although sleep causes ventilatory disturbances of greater severity and variety than does sleep deprivation, the effects of sleep and sleep loss on respiration are similar. For example, both impair ventilatory drive and arousal responses to a variety of stimuli. Although the mechanism of impaired ventilation after sleep loss is not entirely understood, there is evidence to suggest that both respiratory muscle fatigue and central nervous system depression play a role. Patients who suffer from both disturbed sleep and lung disease are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of sleep disruption on breathing. Since sleep restoration returns many respiratory parameters to normal in sleep-deprived individuals, perhaps we should include rest in our treatment of certain patients with respiratory disease.