Review links daytime napping with hypertension

(HealthDay)—Daytime napping appears to be associated with increased risk of hypertension, according to a review and meta-analysis published online July 4 in the Journal of Evidence-Based Medicine.

Wisit Cheungpasitporn, M.D., from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and colleagues conducted a systematic literature review to examine the correlation between napping and hypertension. Data were included from nine observational studies with 112,267 individuals.

The researchers found that in nappers the pooled risk ratio of hypertension was 1.13 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.98 to 1.30). In studies assessing the risk of hypertension in daytime nappers only, the pooled risk ratio for hypertension was 1.19 (95 percent confidence interval, 1.06 to 1.35). Limited data examined the correlation between nighttime napping and hypertension in individuals who worked night shifts, with one observational study reporting a reduced risk of hypertension (odds ratio, 0.79; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.63 to 1.00).

"Our meta-analysis demonstrates a significant association between daytime napping and hypertension," the authors write. "Future study is needed to assess the potential benefits of hypertension screening for daytime nappers."

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