How poor sleep and sleep apnea may speed up heart aging
Sleep pathology and cardiac aging
['FUNDING_R21'] · UNIV OF MASSACHUSETTS MED SCH WORCESTER · NIH-11193947
This project looks at whether low-quality sleep, including sleep apnea, speeds up electrical aging of the heart in adults.
Quick facts
| Phase | ['FUNDING_R21'] |
|---|---|
| Study type | Nih_funding |
| Sex | All |
| Sponsor | UNIV OF MASSACHUSETTS MED SCH WORCESTER (nih funded) |
| Locations | 1 site (WORCESTER, UNITED STATES) |
| Trial ID | NIH-11193947 on ClinicalTrials.gov |
What this research studies
If you have sleep problems, researchers will use long-term overnight sleep recordings and heart measurements to see how sleep affects the heart over time. They will analyze about 2,800 people from the Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study who had repeated polysomnography across roughly 12 years, with a fourth visit completing by 2025. The team will compare sleep apnea and other sleep patterns to measures of cardiac electrical aging and test whether specific sleep 'endotypes' are linked to faster heart aging. This is an observational analysis of existing cohort data rather than a treatment trial.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Adults with a history of sleep problems or sleep apnea, or people enrolled in long-term heart-and-sleep research cohorts (particularly participants in the KoGES cohort), are most relevant to this work.
Not a fit: People looking for an immediate treatment or those without objective sleep recordings are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this observational project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could help identify which sleep problems raise heart risk so doctors can monitor or treat those issues earlier.
How similar studies have performed: Previous studies have linked poor sleep and sleep apnea to higher risk of cardiovascular disease and arrhythmias, but using repeated overnight polysomnography to tie specific sleep endotypes to accelerated electrical cardiac aging is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
WORCESTER, UNITED STATES
- UNIV OF MASSACHUSETTS MED SCH WORCESTER — WORCESTER, UNITED STATES (ACTIVE)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: LIN, HONGHUANG — UNIV OF MASSACHUSETTS MED SCH WORCESTER
- Study coordinator: LIN, HONGHUANG
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.