Mortality Rates Higher in Young Men

Younger men face greater risk of death if theyhave sleep apnea. The study assessed the survivalrates of 14,000 men between 20 and 93years old over a 10-year period for possiblesleep apnea. The researchers at Technion-Israel Institut of Technology saw 372 deathsduring a follow-up of 4.6 years.

The researchers found that among participantswith a respiratory disturbance index (RDI)score >30, only men between 20 and 29 yearsold had a much higher mortality, compared withtheir counterparts in the general population.The investigators also conducted an additionaltest on 1909 patients with severe sleep apnea.This group had RDI scores >50 and an averageof 73 respiratory events per hour of sleep. Ofthis group, 95 died during follow-up.

Reporting in the European Respiratory Journal(March 2005), the researchers learned that themortality rate for men in their 20s was 10 timesgreater in the severe sleep apnea group, comparedwith the general population. Men 30 to 39years old and 40 to 49 years old had mortalityrates >3 times and nearly 2 times higher, respectively.For men 50 years of age and older, thecondition did not have a higher mortality risk.