Latest research: Long-term poor sleep significantly increases the risk of peripheral artery blockage.

Smoking, drinking, high blood pressure, diabetes, coronary heart disease, kidney disease, high blood lipids, high uric acid, and obesity are generally considered to be risk factors for arterial blockage. Huang Junhao, director of the Sleep Center at Dalin Tzu Chi Hospital in Chiayi County, has discovered new risk factors: sleep apnea and snoring. These factors not only disrupt patients' sleep but may also induce peripheral arterial occlusive diseases.

He analyzed 10 years of data from Taiwan's National Health Insurance database and found that patients with sleep apnea, such as those with snoring, had a 1.37 times higher chance of developing peripheral artery (branch aorta) obstructive disease. This research was published this year in the internationally renowned journal *Clinical Otolaryngology*.

Huang Junhao discovered in his outpatient clinic that many patients had problems such as poor sleep, snoring, numbness and pain in their hands and feet, and cramps, which were more pronounced when the weather got colder. He wanted to find out the underlying cause, so he tracked 11,817 patients diagnosed with peripheral arterial occlusive disease between 20 and 2010 from the Taiwan National Health Insurance database. Their ages ranged from 20 to 100 years old. Using a three-fold control group, he obtained the above research results.

He stated that patients with sleep apnea are prone to systemic hypoxia during sleep, and their sympathetic nervous system is also more active, which makes peripheral arteries prone to constriction, resulting in poor circulation, cold hands and feet, tingling and numbness, and even difficulty walking.

Huang Junhao suggests that obese people should lose weight, those with upper respiratory tract diseases should undergo surgical treatment, ensure sufficient oxygen during sleep to prevent peripheral artery blockage, and avoid habits such as smoking, drinking alcohol, and taking sleeping pills in order to stay away from the threat of peripheral artery occlusive disease.

Dr. Huang Chun-hao, director of the Sleep Center at Dalin Tzu Chi Hospital, discovered that sleep apnea and snoring not only disrupt patients' sleep but can also increase the risk of peripheral arterial occlusive disease.

News Source:United Daily News