Study Reveals Link Between Sleep Problems And Glaucoma Blindness And Vision Problems

It is known that poor sleep can affect judgement, mood, ability to learn and retain information, and can increase the risk of serious accidents and injuries. Now researchers are focusing on the long-term consequences of poor sleep. They conducted the world’s first large prospective cohort study to comprehensively examine sleep behaviors and patterns and glaucoma. More than 400,000 people in the UK took part. The results, published in the journal BMJ Open, suggest that people who have unhealthy sleep patterns have an increased risk of developing glaucoma. This can lead to vision loss if not diagnosed and treated early. Glaucoma will likely affect 112 million people worldwide by 2040. “Snoring, daytime sleepiness, insomnia, and short/long duration, individually or together, were all associated with glaucoma risk,” concluded the international team of academics, led by researchers from Beijing, China. “These findings highlight the need for sleep intervention for people at high risk of glaucoma, as well as potential eye screening among people with chronic sleep problems to prevent glaucoma.” The researchers said the study underscored the critical importance of adopting and maintaining healthy sleep patterns and behaviors. The findings also highlight the need for hypnotherapy in people at high risk of glaucoma, as well as eye exams among those with chronic sleep disorders to screen for early signs of the condition, they added. Characterized by the progressive loss of light-sensitive cells in the eye and damage to the optic nerve, the causes of glaucoma are still poorly understood. If left untreated, it can lead to irreversible blindness. Previously published research has suggested that sleep disturbances may be an important risk factor. To explore these issues further, the researchers set out to examine the risk of glaucoma in people with different sleep behaviors: insomnia; too much or too little sleep. night or morning chronotypes (“owls” and “larks”). daytime sleepiness; and snoring. The research looked at data from 409,053 people taking part in the UK Biobank study. People aged 40 to 69 were recruited into the study between 2006 and 2010 and followed until March 2021 to see if they had been diagnosed with glaucoma. Information about their sleeping habits was collected when they participated in the study. Normal sleep duration was defined as between seven and nine hours, while too little or too long was defined as outside this range. The person’s chronotype was defined by whether they described themselves as more of a morning lark or a night owl. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. During an average follow-up period of nearly 11 years, 8,690 cases of glaucoma were identified. With the exception of chronotypes, the other four sleep patterns and behaviors were all associated with varying degrees of increased risk of glaucoma, BMJ Open reported. The researchers found that compared to people who had a healthy sleep pattern, snoring and daytime sleepiness had an 11% increased risk of glaucoma. Meanwhile, insomnia and getting too much or too little sleep was associated with a 13% increased risk. The study was observational, so causation cannot be determined. It also relied on self-report rather than objective measurement, the researchers acknowledged. Glaucoma may itself affect sleep patterns, not the other way around, they added. However, there are plausible biological explanations for the associations found between sleep disturbance and glaucoma, the researchers said. The pressure inside the eye, a key factor in the development of glaucoma, increases when a person is lying down and when sleep hormones are off, as occurs in insomnia, they explained. Depression and anxiety, which often go hand in hand with insomnia, can also increase the pressure inside the eyes. Similarly, episodes of low cellular oxygen levels, caused by sudden cessation of breathing during sleep, may cause direct damage to the optic nerve, it has also been suggested.

title: “Study Reveals Link Between Sleep Problems And Glaucoma Blindness And Vision Problems " ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-10” author: “Clarence Martin”

It is known that poor sleep can affect judgement, mood, ability to learn and retain information, and can increase the risk of serious accidents and injuries. Now researchers are focusing on the long-term consequences of poor sleep. They conducted the world’s first large prospective cohort study to comprehensively examine sleep behaviors and patterns and glaucoma. More than 400,000 people in the UK took part. The results, published in the journal BMJ Open, suggest that people who have unhealthy sleep patterns have an increased risk of developing glaucoma. This can lead to vision loss if not diagnosed and treated early. Glaucoma will likely affect 112 million people worldwide by 2040. “Snoring, daytime sleepiness, insomnia, and short/long duration, individually or together, were all associated with glaucoma risk,” concluded the international team of academics, led by researchers from Beijing, China. “These findings highlight the need for sleep intervention for people at high risk of glaucoma, as well as potential eye screening among people with chronic sleep problems to prevent glaucoma.” The researchers said the study underscored the critical importance of adopting and maintaining healthy sleep patterns and behaviors. The findings also highlight the need for hypnotherapy in people at high risk of glaucoma, as well as eye exams among those with chronic sleep disorders to screen for early signs of the condition, they added. Characterized by the progressive loss of light-sensitive cells in the eye and damage to the optic nerve, the causes of glaucoma are still poorly understood. If left untreated, it can lead to irreversible blindness. Previously published research has suggested that sleep disturbances may be an important risk factor. To explore these issues further, the researchers set out to examine the risk of glaucoma in people with different sleep behaviors: insomnia; too much or too little sleep. night or morning chronotypes (“owls” and “larks”). daytime sleepiness; and snoring. The research looked at data from 409,053 people taking part in the UK Biobank study. People aged 40 to 69 were recruited into the study between 2006 and 2010 and followed until March 2021 to see if they had been diagnosed with glaucoma. Information about their sleeping habits was collected when they participated in the study. Normal sleep duration was defined as between seven and nine hours, while too little or too long was defined as outside this range. The person’s chronotype was defined by whether they described themselves as more of a morning lark or a night owl. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. During an average follow-up period of nearly 11 years, 8,690 cases of glaucoma were identified. With the exception of chronotypes, the other four sleep patterns and behaviors were all associated with varying degrees of increased risk of glaucoma, BMJ Open reported. The researchers found that compared to people who had a healthy sleep pattern, snoring and daytime sleepiness had an 11% increased risk of glaucoma. Meanwhile, insomnia and getting too much or too little sleep was associated with a 13% increased risk. The study was observational, so causation cannot be determined. It also relied on self-report rather than objective measurement, the researchers acknowledged. Glaucoma may itself affect sleep patterns, not the other way around, they added. However, there are plausible biological explanations for the associations found between sleep disturbance and glaucoma, the researchers said. The pressure inside the eye, a key factor in the development of glaucoma, increases when a person is lying down and when sleep hormones are off, as occurs in insomnia, they explained. Depression and anxiety, which often go hand in hand with insomnia, can also increase the pressure inside the eyes. Similarly, episodes of low cellular oxygen levels, caused by sudden cessation of breathing during sleep, may cause direct damage to the optic nerve, it has also been suggested.