Stent patients should beware of sleep apnea, study warns

Obstructive sleep apnea, the most common type of sleep problem, has long been linked to coronary artery disease, stroke and other heart-related problems.

A new study takes these findings further, linking OSA to blood clot formation in stents in heart patients.
The condition, called stent thrombosis, is a life threatening problem.

Writing in the August 2017 issue of BMC Cardiovascular Disorders, researchers found that patients with OSA had a 7.34 times greater risk of stent thrombosis than patients without OSA.

People with OSA frequently snore and gasp for breath during sleep. They can be excessively sleepy during the daytime and have insomnia at night. They also have frequent incidents of nightmares.

OSA affects the cardiovascular system by disrupting the balance of clotting and anticlotting factors, leaving the person predisposed to blood clotting, according to Duke Medicine.

OSA increases the risk of stroke for both men and women, but men with OSA have double or triple the risk. OSA is a treatable condition. Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) is one treatment.

The new study also suggests that in stent surgery on OSA patients, cleaning out plaque before inserting a stent might reduce rates of later thrombosis. The researchers also advised using the largest stent possible and following up with the most potent antiplatelet drugs to inhibit clots.