Sleep health in rural communities and its links to heart and blood vessel disease
Official title: Sleep Health in the Rural South and Its Relationships with Cardiometabolic Health Disparities
Funded at Brigham and Women's Hospital · NIH-11391096 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A study in rural Southern communities will track how sleep patterns relate to cardiometabolic health to better understand why this population bears a higher burden of disease.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Brigham and Women's Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project start | August 15, 2023 |
| Project end | May 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $1,006,629 |
| NIH project number | 5R01HL164462-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11391096 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults 21 years and older living in rural southern regions who can wear a simple sleep monitoring device and complete health assessments.
✕Less likely to help
Individuals without access to rural health services or those unable to participate in sleep monitoring may not directly benefit.
What this research studies
This project builds on a previous rural health study and adds sleep health measurements to see how sleep duration, quality, timing, and regularity relate to blood pressure, obesity, and other heart and metabolic risk factors. Researchers will collect minimally burdensome sleep data alongside existing health information in adults from rural Appalachia and the Mississippi Delta to identify social and environmental contributors. The goal is to pinpoint sleep-related factors that may contribute to disparities so interventions can be designed for these communities. участники will participate through surveys, wearable sleep monitoring, and health assessments conducted with minimal intrusion.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, findings could guide tailored sleep-focused strategies to reduce heart disease and metabolic risk in rural populations.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work links sleep health to cardiometabolic risk in diverse groups, but this study targets rural Southern populations with a comprehensive, multi-dimensional sleep assessment.
Where this research is happening
-
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Boston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Gottlieb, Daniel J — Brigham and Women's Hospital
- Study coordinator: Gottlieb, Daniel J
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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.