In patients with an acute myocardial infarction, disrupted circadian rhythms during the initial days in the cardiac intensive care unit, caused by factors such as noise, excessive night-time light and frequent patient–staff interactions, can have devastating effects on cardiac repair and long-term prognosis. Providing care that aligns with the patient’s natural circadian rhythms is critical for optimum long-term recovery. Incorporating ‘circadian medicine’ into clinical practice will provide important health-care benefits.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals
Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription
$29.99 / 30 days
cancel any time
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 print issues and online access
$209.00 per year
only $17.42 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
References
Mozaffarian, D. et al. Heart disease and stroke statistics–2015 update: a report from the American Heart Association. Circulation 131, e29–e322 (2015).
Martino, T. A. & Sole, M. J. Molecular time: an often overlooked dimension to cardiovascular disease. Circ. Res. 105, 1047–1061 (2009).
Martino, T. A. et al. Circadian rhythm disorganization produces profound cardiovascular and renal disease in hamsters. Am. J. Physiol. Regul. Integr. Comp. Physiol. 294, R1675–R1683 (2008).
Rana, S., Prabhu, S. D. & Young, M. E. Chronobiological influence over cardiovascular function: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Circ. Res. 126, 258–279 (2020).
Alibhai, F. J. et al. Short-term disruption of diurnal rhythms after murine myocardial infarction adversely affects long-term myocardial structure and function. Circ. Res. 114, 1713–1722 (2014).
Knauert, M. P. et al. Causes, consequences, and treatments of sleep and circadian disruption in the ICU: an official American Thoracic Society research statement. Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. 207, e49–e68 (2023).
Sunderram, J., Sofou, S., Kamisoglu, K., Karantza, V. & Androulakis, I. P. Time-restricted feeding and the realignment of biological rhythms: translational opportunities and challenges. J. Transl. Med. 12, 79 (2014).
Martino, T. A. et al. The primary benefits of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibition on cardiac remodeling occur during sleep time in murine pressure overload hypertrophy. J. Am. Coll. Cardiol. 57, 2020–2028 (2011).
McDermott, A. Light pollution is fixable. Can researchers and policymakers work together to dim the lights? Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 120, e2309539120 (2023).
Smolensky, M. H., Hermida, R. C., Reinberg, A., Sackett-Lundeen, L. & Portaluppi, F. Circadian disruption: new clinical perspective of disease pathology and basis for chronotherapeutic intervention. Chronobiol. Int. 33, 1101–1119 (2016).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Competing interests
The authors declare no competing interests.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Sole, M.J., Martino, T.A. Circadian medicine: a critical strategy for cardiac care. Nat Rev Cardiol 20, 715–716 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41569-023-00925-8
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41569-023-00925-8