Long Naps and Sleep Linked to Higher Stroke Risk

A Chinese prospective cohort study concluded that long sleep duration, long midday napping, and poor sleep quality were independently and jointly associated with higher risks of incident stroke. Persistently long sleep duration or switch from average to long sleep duration increased the risk of stroke. The study included 31,750 retirees aged 61.7 years on average at baseline and followed them for an average of 6.2 years. Compared with sleeping 7 to <8 hours/night, those reporting longer sleep duration (≥9 hours/night) had a greater risk of total stroke (hazard ratio [HR] 1.23), while shorter sleep (<6 hours/night) had no significant effect on stroke risk. The HR of total stroke was 1.25 for midday napping >90 minutes vs 1–30 minutes. The results were similar for ischemic stroke. Compared with good sleep quality, those with poor sleep quality showed a 29%, 28%, and 56% higher risk of total, ischemic, and hemorrhagic stroke, respectively. Moreover, there were significant joint effects of sleeping ≥9 hours/night and midday napping >90 minutes (HR 1.85), and sleeping ≥9 hours/night and poor sleep quality (HR 1.82) on risk of total stroke. Compared with persistently sleeping 7–9 hours/night, those who persistently slept ≥9 hours/night or switched from 7 to 9 hours to ≥9 hours/night also had a higher risk of total stroke. Naps are a component of irregular sleep patterns and common in China. The findings are consistent with prior research showing irregular sleep patterns tied to stroke and cardiovascular risk, and add to the mounting evidence for the role of sleep in cardiovascular health. Source: https://n.neurology.org/