Lack of sleep may pose heart threat
Wednesday November 12th, 2008
Researchers have found evidence that sleeping less than seven and a half hours per night may increase the chances of heart disease among people at a slightly raised risk.
Dr Kazuo Eguchi and his team at Jichi Medical University in Japan examined figures on 1,255 people with night-time high blood pressure (hypertension).
Participants had an average age of 70.4 years and were followed for about 50 months. Short sleep duration was defined as less than 7.5 hours. During follow-up, there were 99 cardiovascular disease events - heart attack, heart failure or stroke.
In the Archives of Internal Medicine, the authors report: "The incidence of cardiovascular disease was 2.4 per 100 person-years in subjects with less than 7.5 hours of sleep and 1.8 per 100 person-years in subjects with longer sleep duration."
Those whose blood pressure did not rise at night-time also had an increased, but smaller, risk of developing heart disease.
The authors conclude: "Shorter duration of sleep is a predictor of incident cardiovascular disease in elderly individuals with hypertension, particularly when it occurs with elevated night-time blood pressure."
The effect appeared to be independent of day-time blood pressure and other common cardiovascular risk factors. However, as most of these participants were elderly, these results may not be applicable to younger groups.
On the whole, people are sleeping less in modern societies, say the authors, but "adequate sleep is essential to preventing health conditions such as obesity and diabetes as well as several risk factors for cardiovascular disease including sleep-disordered breathing and night-time hypertension".
They recommend that physicians inquire about sleep duration in the risk assessment of patients with hypertension.
Eguchi, K. et al. Short Sleep Duration as an Independent Predictor of Cardiovascular Events in Japanese Patients With Hypertension. Archives of Internal Medicine, Vol. 168, November 10, 2008, pp. 2225-31.
Tags: Asia | Heart Health
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