Man who "dies" 50 times each night is to sue a health trust

Man who 'dies' in sleep to sue Trust

Sep 18 2005
By Robert Weatherall, The Sunday Sun

A man who "dies" 50 times each night is to sue a health trust which he claims has failed to help him.

Widower Lyall Richardson suffers from Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA) which causes him to stop breathing up to 50 times each night when he goes to sleep.

Lyall, 67, who has suffered from the condition for just over a year, has had to fork out hundreds of pounds he had been planning to spend on a holiday in order to buy a machine which will keep him breathing whenever he nods off.

Explaining his condition Lyall said: "There is a little flap at the back of the throat which stays in the open position when most people go to sleep.

"It allows air to pass into the lungs. However, for people with OSA that flap can fall down and oxygen just can't get into the body."

Our bodies have a built in response mechanism which kick-starts our lungs whenever such a condition becomes too bad.

But Lyle fears that one day the electrical impulses which wake him from his sleep and tell him to start breathing again won't work and he will suffocate.......

Complete story here.[/color]