The louder the snoring, the higher the risk of infertility?

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is commonly known as snoring. Snoring significantly increases the risk of infertility.

[OSA can cause infertility]

OSA is an independent risk factor for infertility, with an increased risk of infertility of 24% in OSA patients, resulting in an absolute risk of 20.4%. The increased risk of infertility caused by OSA was present in all participants under 40 years old, and the highest increase was in the 18-24 age group, reaching 229%.

The longer the OSA lasts, the higher the risk of infertility; untreated OSA patients also have a higher risk of infertility. In addition, compared with people over 45 years old, people aged 18-24 have a significantly higher risk of infertility, with an OR of 2.86.

The presence of OSA and other comorbidities further increases the risk of infertility.

The risk increases by 40% for patients with hypertension, 101% for patients with diabetes, 80% for patients with hyperlipidemia, 113% for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, 70% for patients with chronic kidney disease, 56% for patients with coronary heart disease, 56% for patients with cirrhosis, 201% for patients with obesity, 99% for patients with anxiety, and 116% for patients with depression.

[Why does snoring affect infertility? 】

The main adverse effects of OSA include oxygen desaturation, sleep disturbance, and hypercapnia, which are pathological phenomena associated with cardiovascular, metabolic, and neurocognitive diseases.

Some researchers have suggested that OSA and other sleep disorders may lead to infertility by increasing oxidative stress, insulin resistance, systemic inflammation, and abnormal reproductive hormone secretion; and several studies have found an association between OSA and low testosterone levels.

How can we avoid this?

Generally, fat people are prone to snoring. You can go to the hospital for surgery or use special equipment. In addition, obese patients can improve OSA symptoms by losing weight, quitting smoking and drinking, and exercising.

JAMA Netw Open. 2021;4(1):e2031846. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.31846