Do Sleep Disorders Have an Effect on Cardiovascular Health Outcomes?

Insomnia, narcolepsy, and sleep apnea affect cardiovascular health, according to the findings of a systematic review published in the journal Cureus.

The predominant cause of mortality worldwide is noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), in which NCDs contribute to 71% of all deaths. The most common NCD is cardiovascular disease (CVD) and among the CVD population, over 70% of cases can be attributed to modifiable risk factors.

One such modifiable risk factor is disrupted sleep. Disordered sleep falls into 3 categories: insomnia, or trouble falling asleep, behavioral and movement disturbances, such as restless leg syndrome (RSL), and narcolepsy, or excessive daytime sleepiness. Sleep disturbances can also be caused by obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) which occurs when breathing is interrupted during sleep.

To assess the available evidence about the relationship between disturbed sleep and CVD, researchers from Rajarajeswari Medical College and Hospital in India and Harvard Medical School in the United States searched publication databases for open-access research articles and identified 7 publications that were included in this review.

The studies reported that nonsleep apnea sleep disorders were associated with a 1.43-fold increased risk for acute coronary syndrome; insomnia associated with a 45% increased risk for developing or dying from CVD, cardiac death, and worsening heart failure; and narcolepsy associated with the risk for myocardial infarction, cardiac arrest, and heart failure. For OSA, there was a nearly 2-fold higher risk for CVD mortality, a higher rate of coronary artery calcification presence, and increased risk for incident atrial fibrillation.

This review may have excluded some high-quality studies as only open-access articles were included in this review.

“This comprehensive study has shed light on the various effects of distinct sleep disorders on cardiovascular outcomes,” the researchers concluded. “The findings highlight the critical importance of prompt and accurate diagnosis of sleep disorders as a vital step in preventing and mitigating their detrimental impact on cardiovascular health.”