《中英對照讀新聞》Impotence common in men with sleep apnea 患「睡眠呼吸暫停症」的男人普遍不舉

◎陳成良

Men with breathing problems during sleep may commonly suffer from erectile dysfunction （ED） as well, a small study suggests. Researchers found that of 30 men with sleep apnea, 24 （80 percent） also had symptoms of ED.

睡眠時有呼吸問題的男性，可能普遍也有勃起障礙（ED），一項小型研究指出。研究人員發現，30名有睡眠呼吸暫停症的男性之中，24人（80%）也出現勃起障礙症狀。

People with sleep apnea have numerous stops and starts in breathing during the night, with chronic, loud snoring being a hallmark of the condition. The most common form of the disorder is obstructive sleep apnea, in which the soft tissues at the back of the throat temporarily collapse during sleep, blocking the airways.

有睡眠呼吸暫停毛病的人夜間睡覺時，呼吸出現無數次時斷時續，這種症狀的一個特徵是，持續很久的巨大鼾聲。這種疾病最常見的類型是「阻塞性睡眠呼吸暫停」—睡眠時咽喉後的軟組織暫時塌落，阻塞了氣道。

Over time, oxygen deprivation during the night can harm the cardiovascular system, raising the odds of high blood pressure, stroke and heart disease.

一段時間下來，夜間因呼吸暫停導致的缺氧會損害心血管系統，增加罹患高血壓、中風和心臟病的危險。

But researchers have also speculated that sleep apnea could contribute to ED, according to the authors of the new study, led by Dr. John P. Mulhall of the Weill Medical College of Cornell University in New York, and published in the journal Urology.

不過，據這項研究的執筆人表示，研究人員也推測，睡眠呼吸暫停症會導致勃起障礙。這項研究由紐約州康乃爾大學韋爾醫學院穆哈爾博士領導，發表在「泌尿學」期刊。

It、s thought that the erections men naturally have during deep REM sleep help preserve normal erectile function. Men with sleep apnea, however, have continuous sleep interruptions and spend less time in the REM stages.

研究人員認為，男性在深度REM（快速眼動）睡眠中自然勃起，有助他們保持正常勃起功能。有睡眠呼吸暫停症的男性，睡眠時斷時續，處於REM深度睡眠階段的時間較少。

新聞辭典

impotence：名詞，性無能；陽痿；不舉。

hallmark：名詞，標誌；特徵。

REM：快速動眼期（Rapid Eye Movement），是一個睡眠的階段，眼球在此階段時會快速移動。在這個階段，大腦神經元的活動與清醒時相同，多數在醒來後能回憶且栩栩如生的夢，都是在REM睡眠時發生的。REM睡眠與其他的睡眠階段極為不同，因此，除了REM以外的睡眠階段，被稱為非REM睡眠（NREM）。