Jennifer Matthews: Sleeping like a baby, is only possible with this, if you have sleep apnea.

Mitch Weinberg: It is very uncomfortable, I won't even get into what it makes you look like.

David Carley: It's cumbersome, it's awkward. Less than half of our patients really can tolerate using this device every night in the long run.

Jennifer Matthews: But the CPAP is the most effective treatment, it allows patients to live longer with a healthier heart and it keeps them more alert by day. But some Doctor say, it's not enough.

Jerome Siegel: We need better treatments that are easier to tolerate because people don't like wearing this mask, which is what's necessary for CPAP.

Jennifer Matthews: For this Dr. David well, may have something better. In their study every patients taking the anti-depressant mirtazapine saw improvement. On average, they had 50% reduction in the number of times they stopped breathing during the night.

David Carley: This has never been shown before, that a pill could actually improve apnea in 100% of the patients.

Jennifer Matthews: The drugs works by manipulating the brain chemical serotonin which seems to help patients breathe normally during sleep.

David Carley: And we think that we're at the beginning of a new wave of exploration of new and hopefully more effective drugs that will benefit these patients.

Jennifer Matthews: To look forward to the day, they won't have to put on their masks. This is Jennifer Matthews reporting.