A new study by Columbia University researchers believes that cholesterol-lowering medicines known as statins have the potential to minimise heart disease in people with obstructive sleep apnea regardless of whether they use CPAP equipment at night. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy improves sleep quality and reduces daytime fatigue in people with obstructive sleep apnea. However, findings from recent clinical trials, CPAP does not improve heart health as physicians originally hoped.
The need to find alternative methods to reduce heart disease in sleep apnea may be urgent as the condition is known to triple the risk of having a heart attack, stroke, or another serious cardiovascular event. The study, led by Sanja Jelic, MD, associate professor of medicine at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, shares that statins may be one such method.
The study included 87 people with recently diagnosed obstructive sleep apnea who were being treated with CPAP. The patients were randomised to receive treatment with either statins or a placebo. The researchers found that statins protected blood vessels against dangerous inflammatory changes in people with the condition.
Researchers looked specifically at the CD59 protein, which checks inflammation when stabilised in the blood vessels. Jelic said, “The effect we found with statins is important. Inflammation in the blood vessels is a key step in progression of cardiovascular disease, so anything that we can do to stabilize CD59 in these patients is likely to be beneficial for heart health.” Currently, only 8% to 13% of patients with obstructive sleep apnea are prescribed statins.
