Sleep apnea, especially at a young age, elevates odds for heart disease
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Key takeaways:
- People with obstructive sleep apnea were more likely to develop heart disease than people without it.
- The trend was strongest in individuals aged 40 years or younger.
Adults with obstructive sleep apnea had elevated odds of developing various heart-related health conditions compared with those without it, and the association was strongest in younger individuals, researchers reported.
“Our research highlights the need for [obstructive sleep apnea] screening in primary care settings, especially for younger adults who can benefit the most from early intervention,” Bhaskar Thakur, PhD, MPS, assistant professor of family and community medicine, emergency medicine, physical medicine and rehabilitation, and in the Peter O’Donnell Jr. School of Public Health at UT Southwestern, said in a press release. “Discussion of sleep quality and a review of [obstructive sleep apnea] symptoms should be a regular part of every adult patient’s annual physical, regardless of age.”
The researchers conducted a cross-sectional study on data from 9,887 individuals from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2013 to 2018 (mean age, 48 years; 52% women). Participants were stratified by age (20-40 years vs. > 40 years) and by whether they had probable obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), defined by self-reporting of symptoms such as snoring or gasping/breath cessation while sleeping. The results were published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
Risk factors of interest included hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia and metabolic syndrome, whereas heart diseases of interest (all of which were self-reported) included congestive heart failure, CHD, angina, MI and stroke.
Compared with those without it, participants with probable OSA had greater prevalence of risk factors including hypertension (adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR] = 1.19; P < .001), diabetes (aPR = 1.17; P = .01) and metabolic syndrome (aPR = 1.14; P < .001), as well as heart diseases such as MI (aPR = 1.63; P < .01), stroke (aPR = 1.41; P = .03) and any CVD event (aPR = 1.36; P = .01), Thakur and colleagues wrote.
Among those with probable OSA, prevalence ratios for all outcomes were greater in people aged 20 to 40 years than those older than 40 years, including any CVD event (aPR = 3.44; P < .001), hypertension (aPR = 1.45; P < .001), metabolic syndrome (aPR = 1.25; P < .001) and angina (aPR = 10.39; P < .001), according to the researchers.
“The public tends to think of sleep apnea as simply ‘bad sleep’ that causes fatigue, but the implications are far more serious,” Thakur said in the release. “With obesity on the rise, the number of young adults with OSA is increasing, and without proper intervention, they are putting themselves at higher risk for a broad range of diseases and conditions.”
Reference:
- Sleep apnea sufferers more likely to develop heart disease. https://www.utsouthwestern.edu/newsroom/articles/year-2024/july-sleep-apnea-heart-disease.html. Published July 9, 2024. Accessed July 9, 2024.
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