Poor sleep may increase risk for irregular heart rhythms

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-11/aha-psm110316.php

Public Release: 14-Nov-2016
Poor sleep may increase risk for irregular heart rhythms
American Heart Association Meeting Report - Presentation: 733 - Session: AR.RFO.52 and Presentation: 218 - Session: AR.AOS.780
American Heart Association

Disruptions in sleep may be raising your risks of an irregular heartbeat, known as atrial fibrillation (AF), according to preliminary research presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2016.

Obstructive sleep apnea, sleep interrupted by pauses in breathing, is a known risk for atrial fibrillation - an irregular heartbeat that can lead to strokes, heart failure and other heart-related complications. But whether there's a relationship between disrupted sleep and atrial fibrillation even when there's no sleep apnea is unclear.

Presentation 733: Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco examined three sources of data - each using a different approach - to isolate and confirm the effects of poor sleep on atrial fibrillation. Their analyses of these studies showed that:

disrupted sleep, including insomnia, may be independently associated with atrial fibrillation;

people who reported frequent night-time awakening had about a 26 percent higher risk of developing atrial fibrillation compared to those who didn't wake up a lot; and

people diagnosed with insomnia had a 29 percent higher risk of developing atrial fibrillation compared to those without insomnia.

Insomnia meant having trouble falling asleep, not getting enough sleep, or having poor sleep.

•••••