Association of sleep-disordered breathing with hypertension in Japanese industrial workers

The objective of this study is to determine whether sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is associated with hypertension in the Japanese working population. The target population included 2877 industrial workers, aged 18–60 years, who answered a sleeping-related questionnaire during an annual health checkup. A total of 2512 responses were available for analysis. The questionnaire included the Epworth Sleepiness Scale and other items related to sleep habits. We determined the prevalence of SDB in the sample, including habitual snoring and obstructive sleep apnea syndrome. We also analyzed the data for any association of SDB with hypertension. There was a higher prevalence of habitual snoring (HS) in males (10.5%) than in females (4.7%). The prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) was 2.5 and 2.0% in males and females, respectively. There was an age-dependent increase in the prevalence of both HS and OSAS in this working population. The mean body mass index (BMI) of individuals with SDB was 24.3 ± 3.1 kg/m2. Blood pressure in the SDB group was significantly higher than that in the non-SDB group. After adjustment for obesity, sex, age and alcohol consumption, logistic regression analysis revealed an independent association between SDB and hypertension (systolic blood pressure higher than 180 mmHg; OR: 4.3, 95% CI: 1.7–10.8). Therefore, it was found that SDB is independently associated with hypertension in Japanese industrial workers.