Experts urge treatment for sleep apnea, as it can worsen heart problems

睡不好觉? 如果你也有心脏病, 或者说是风险因素, 忽视这个问题可能会进一步损害你的健康, 一项新的科学声明发现.

Heart doctors should pay more attention to a common sleep disorder that can worsen heart disease but often is unrecognized and undertreated, according to the report from the 美国心脏协会 published Monday in its journal 循环.

The scientific statement calls for increased screening and greater awareness of obstructive sleep apnea, 或阻塞性睡眠呼吸暂停综合症, 对于有心血管危险因素或疾病的人.

OSA, characterized by snoring and disrupted sleep, can worsen heart conditions. That can create a cycle in which heart problems then worsen sleep apnea. It also is a risk factor for a heart rhythm disorder called atrial fibrillation, 以及心源性猝死.

Advances in treatment f或阻塞性睡眠呼吸暂停综合症 can help but often are overlooked, the report finds.

“患者报告情绪好转, 不打鼾, 白天少犯困, improved quality of life and work productivity with OSA treatment," Dr. Yerem Yeghiazarians, chair of the report's writing group, said in a news release. He is a professor of medicine and the Leone-Perkins Family Endowed Chair in Cardiology at the University of California, 旧金山.

Screening advances have changed how sleep apnea is diagnosed and treated, he said. Patients no longer need to spend the night at sleep study centers. They can use FDA-approved sleep devices they take home and send back to their doctors for assessment.

And, continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP machines, are no longer the only form of treatment. Other therapeutic options include positional therapy, weight loss, oral appliances and surgery.

Between 40% and 80% of people with cardiovascular disease also have sleep apnea. Symptoms include snoring, lapses in breathing, fragmented sleep and daytime sleepiness. It affects about 34% of middle-aged men and 17% of middle-aged women.

阻塞性睡眠呼吸暂停与几种心血管并发症有关, 包括高血压, especially when it is difficult to treat; stroke; worsening heart failure and heart disease; Type 2 diabetes; metabolic syndrome; and pulmonary hypertension, a type of high blood pressure that affects the arteries in the lungs and the heart. It also occurs more often in people at high risk for heart attacks.

The report recommends different OSA screenings based on a person's heart condition and its severity.

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