Male veterans who reported mild-to-moderate psychological distress in the previous year had 61% higher odds of experiencing sleep apnea, according to a California State University study. Those with serious psychological distress had 138% higher odds. The average prevalence of sleep apnea was 5.9%, but the proportions rose from 3.7% in 2005 to 8.1% in 2014.
The researchers analyzed data from the 2005-2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. They cite other research that found the age-adjusted prevalence of sleep apnea among U.S. veterans increased almost 6-fold from 2000 to 2010. They also point to an evaluation of veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn that found that 69.2% of 159 veterans screened were at high risk for obstructive sleep apnea.
An even stronger risk factor was asthma. Veterans with a past-year diagnosis of asthma had 256% higher odds of experiencing sleep apnea than among those without asthma. The researchers note that men and women may be asymptomatic when they are recruited but develop asthma due to environmental factors during deployment. The researchers urge more and better screening regardless of whether the service member had asthma symptoms during recruitment.
Their study is unique, the researchers say, in that it demonstrates a putative relationship between sleep apnea and mental illness. They suggest multidisciplinary interventions, including peer-support strategies to improve veterans’ mental health and community-based resources to help improve access to health care. Above all, the researchers urge more rigorous screening of sleep apnea and better sleep apnea treatment for veterans.
