03 Mar , 17:58
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Sleep disorders may pose a far greater threat to the heart than is commonly believed and deserve the same close attention as blood pressure readings or cholesterol levels. This is the conclusion reached by specialists at the Yale School of Medicine.
As reported by TUT.AZ with reference to the Journal of the American Heart Association, scientists studied data from nearly one million American veterans who served after the events of September 11 and discovered an alarming pattern. People who simultaneously suffer from insomnia and obstructive sleep apnea were found to have a significantly higher risk of developing hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases than those diagnosed with only one of these disorders. In global medical practice, this combination is referred to by the abbreviation COMISA (comorbid insomnia and sleep apnea).
The first author of the study, Allison Gaffey, an associate professor in the Department of Cardiology at Yale University, draws attention to the fact that the modern healthcare system remains predominantly focused on treating already developed heart diseases. At the same time, early and potentially modifiable risk factors, including sleep problems, often remain overlooked.
Insomnia manifests as difficulty falling asleep and frequent nighttime awakenings, while sleep apnea is accompanied by repeated breathing interruptions. Despite the fact that clinically these conditions are often considered separately, in real life they frequently go hand in hand. "Treating one disorder and ignoring the other is like bailing water out of a boat without patching the hole," Gaffey explained figuratively.
Medical professionals emphasize that during quality sleep, the cardiovascular system undergoes a crucial recovery phase — blood pressure decreases, heart rate stabilizes, and blood vessels have the opportunity to regenerate. With chronic sleep deprivation or regular episodes of apnea, this mechanism fails, which over time can lead to serious consequences.
The senior author of the study, sleep medicine specialist Andrey Zinchuk, added that the impact of sleep on the body continues to be underestimated — both by patients themselves and by part of the medical community. According to him, regular assessment of sleep quality should become part of everyday practice on par with monitoring blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol levels.
The authors of the study are convinced that early diagnosis and timely treatment of sleep disorders can significantly reduce the likelihood of heart attacks and other cardiovascular complications — and the data from this large-scale analysis confirm this.
