Nightmares & Cardiovascular Risk

An article came out last month regarding the potential for nightmares to be associated with increased cardiovascular risk. A group of veterans were studied and revealed those with greater frequency and severity of nightmares demonstrated greater problems with hypertension and heart disease. Even after excluding the co-existing condition of PTSD, nightmares were still associated with these cardiovascular conditions. A commentary on the article also worked through several theories attempting to explain these connections.

When I read research articles like the items linked above, I know there’s a good chance something is missing in the discussion to explain this unusual finding. To my eye, and in my experience, the most obvious missing component is the fact many chronic nightmare sufferers are diagnosed with sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is a much more potent influence on cardiovascular disease than nightmares. Therefore, I would wonder whether nightmares are simply the tip of the iceberg or a proxy, whereas the real culprit is the sleep-disordered breathing.

I wrote a Letter to the Editor explaining my theory, and the letter was published a few days ago in the journal Sleep.