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Sleep apnoea, atrial fibrillation, and heart failure—quo vadis?

Strong associations exist between sleep disordered breathing (SDB) and both atrial fibrillation (AF) and heart failure (HF). Burgeoning epidemics of obesity, SDB, AF, and HF make these conditions priorities for health-care policymakers. Two observational studies now suggest outcome benefits from screening and treating for SDB in AF and HF.

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Figure 1: Proposed pathophysiological components of obstructive sleep apnoea, activation of cardiovascular disease mechanisms, and consequent development of established cardiovascular disease.

References

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Acknowledgements

V.K.S. is supported by NIH grant HL65176.

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Correspondence to Virend K. Somers.

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V.K.S. declares that he has received grant support from Philips Respironics Foundation (gift to Mayo Foundation); is a consultant for GlaxoSmithKline, PricewaterhouseCoopers, ResMed, Respicardia, Rhonda Grey, and U-Health; and is working with Mayo Health Solutions and their industry partners on intellectual property related to sleep and cardiovascular disease. C.A.A.C. declares no competing interests.

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Chahal, C., Somers, V. Sleep apnoea, atrial fibrillation, and heart failure—quo vadis?. Nat Rev Cardiol 12, 263–264 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrcardio.2015.31

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