A new study conducted by researchers at Norway’s University of Oslo has deduced that nearly half of the patients with cardiovascular disease experience insomnia. 

The study was published in the journal ‘Sleep Advances’.

“Sleep problems are linked to mental health issues, but our study found that insomnia was still significantly associated with heart events even after accounting for symptoms of anxiety and depression,” said Lars Frojd, lead author of the study and a medical student at the university.  

“The findings suggest that heart patients should be assessed for insomnia and offered appropriate management,” he added.

The study consisted of 1,068 patients who suffered a heart attack or a heart procedure (bypass surgery or stent implantation) about 16 months prior to the study.

The researchers of the study also collected data on insomnia, risk factors of recurring heart disease and other conditions.

Participants were asked to fill out the Bergen Insomnia Scale questionnaire which consisted of six questions related to sleep.

The risk factors included the status of smoking, C-reactive protein (a predictor of inflammation), diabetes, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, waist circumference, and systolic blood pressure. The co-existing conditions included kidney failure, stroke, transient ischaemic attack and peripheral artery disease.

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The findings of the study revealed that almost half (45%) of the participants had insomnia and 24% consumed a sleep medication in the past seven days. 

The average age of participants was 62 years.

Insomnia accounted for 16% of recurrent major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in risk in attributable risk fraction analyses.

“This means that 16% of recurrent major adverse cardiovascular events might have been avoided if none of the participants had insomnia,” Frojd said.

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“Our study indicates that insomnia is common in heart disease patients and is linked with subsequent cardiovascular problems regardless of risk factors, co-existing health conditions and symptoms of mental health. Further research is needed to examine whether insomnia treatments such as cognitive behavioural therapy and digital applications are effective in this patient group,” he added.