Sleep Apnea may be Linked to Heart Disease

Sleep apnea may be causing blood vessels to thicken which can cause heart
disease. In general people with sleep apnea the viciously obstructive
sleeping disorder has bothered many people alongside the possibility of
inducing vascular and coronary ailments. One in every 50 women and one in
every 25 men is said to have sleep apnea, and this research done by Emory
University has been published *American Journal of Respiratory Cell and
Molecular Biology.*

According to Science Daily, "Cyclically depriving mice of oxygen –
researchers call this "chronic intermittent hypoxia" -- in a way that
simulates obstructive sleep apnea gives them pulmonary hypertension.
Pulmonary hypertension, which can be life threatening, is a condition in
which the right side of the heart has trouble pumping blood because of
resistance in the lung's blood vessels."

Physicians have urged high-risk heart disease patients to get yearly scans
of their heart for early detection and prevention, and now patients with
sleep apnea may find it a wise decision to also get heart scans.

---