Skip to main content

Lund University Publications

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Sleep disturbance in association with elevated pulse rate for prediction of mortality--consequences of mental strain?

Nilsson, Peter LU ; Nilsson, J A ; Hedblad, B and Berglund, Göran LU (2001) In Journal of Internal Medicine 250(6). p.521-529
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Sleep deprivation has experimentally been shown to adversely influence glucose metabolism, endocrine function and sympathovagal balance in young men without known serious disease. We investigated the impact of sleep problems and resting heart rate in a large sample of self-reported, healthy middle-aged men and women on long-term mortality. METHODS: In all 22,444 men and 10,902 women participated in a population-based health screening (71% mean attendance), including blood sampling and examination of blood pressure (BP) and pulse rate after 10 min supine rest, as well as a self-administered questionnaire on sleep problems. Mortality was assessed from national death registers. RESULTS: Sleep disturbances were related to increased... (More)
OBJECTIVES: Sleep deprivation has experimentally been shown to adversely influence glucose metabolism, endocrine function and sympathovagal balance in young men without known serious disease. We investigated the impact of sleep problems and resting heart rate in a large sample of self-reported, healthy middle-aged men and women on long-term mortality. METHODS: In all 22,444 men and 10,902 women participated in a population-based health screening (71% mean attendance), including blood sampling and examination of blood pressure (BP) and pulse rate after 10 min supine rest, as well as a self-administered questionnaire on sleep problems. Mortality was assessed from national death registers. RESULTS: Sleep disturbances were related to increased cardiovascular risk factor levels at baseline in both sexes, and predicted total and cause-specific mortality after a mean of 12 years (women) and 17 years (men) of follow-up. In men, self-reported healthy at baseline, total mortality during follow-up was independently predicted by both sleep problems and increased resting heart rate, also after adjustment for smoking, body mass index (BMI), systolic BP, cholesterol, smoking and problematic alcohol drinking habits. A step-wise increased total mortality was shown in men reporting successively worse sleep problems and higher heart rate, highest hazard ratio 2.7 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.1-3.4] after adjustments, compared with men free from sleep problems and with normal heart rate. CONCLUSIONS: Sleep disturbance is a predictor of total and cause-specific mortality in both sexes, but only interacts with increased resting heart rate for this prediction in healthy men. Sleep problems correlated cross-sectional with disturbances in lipid and glucose metabolism, even after adjustment for degree of obesity and smoking. Sleep disturbance is a symptom for a biological pathway that is correlated to premature mortality. One possible explanation would be that it acts in concert with sympathetic nervous activation (SNA), both being consequences of chronic stress exposure. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
heart rate, insomnia, mortality, sleep, stress
in
Journal of Internal Medicine
volume
250
issue
6
pages
521 - 529
publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
external identifiers
  • pmid:11902821
  • scopus:0035668162
ISSN
1365-2796
DOI
10.1046/j.1365-2796.2001.00913.x
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
60032cb3-5159-410e-9a56-49ddc3dcc285 (old id 1119829)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 16:31:42
date last changed
2022-01-28 20:23:07
@article{60032cb3-5159-410e-9a56-49ddc3dcc285,
  abstract     = {{OBJECTIVES: Sleep deprivation has experimentally been shown to adversely influence glucose metabolism, endocrine function and sympathovagal balance in young men without known serious disease. We investigated the impact of sleep problems and resting heart rate in a large sample of self-reported, healthy middle-aged men and women on long-term mortality. METHODS: In all 22,444 men and 10,902 women participated in a population-based health screening (71% mean attendance), including blood sampling and examination of blood pressure (BP) and pulse rate after 10 min supine rest, as well as a self-administered questionnaire on sleep problems. Mortality was assessed from national death registers. RESULTS: Sleep disturbances were related to increased cardiovascular risk factor levels at baseline in both sexes, and predicted total and cause-specific mortality after a mean of 12 years (women) and 17 years (men) of follow-up. In men, self-reported healthy at baseline, total mortality during follow-up was independently predicted by both sleep problems and increased resting heart rate, also after adjustment for smoking, body mass index (BMI), systolic BP, cholesterol, smoking and problematic alcohol drinking habits. A step-wise increased total mortality was shown in men reporting successively worse sleep problems and higher heart rate, highest hazard ratio 2.7 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.1-3.4] after adjustments, compared with men free from sleep problems and with normal heart rate. CONCLUSIONS: Sleep disturbance is a predictor of total and cause-specific mortality in both sexes, but only interacts with increased resting heart rate for this prediction in healthy men. Sleep problems correlated cross-sectional with disturbances in lipid and glucose metabolism, even after adjustment for degree of obesity and smoking. Sleep disturbance is a symptom for a biological pathway that is correlated to premature mortality. One possible explanation would be that it acts in concert with sympathetic nervous activation (SNA), both being consequences of chronic stress exposure.}},
  author       = {{Nilsson, Peter and Nilsson, J A and Hedblad, B and Berglund, Göran}},
  issn         = {{1365-2796}},
  keywords     = {{heart rate; insomnia; mortality; sleep; stress}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{6}},
  pages        = {{521--529}},
  publisher    = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
  series       = {{Journal of Internal Medicine}},
  title        = {{Sleep disturbance in association with elevated pulse rate for prediction of mortality--consequences of mental strain?}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2796.2001.00913.x}},
  doi          = {{10.1046/j.1365-2796.2001.00913.x}},
  volume       = {{250}},
  year         = {{2001}},
}