Adults currently infected with COVID-19 reportedly have a higher risk of hospitalization and/or death if they also have sleeping disorders, a peer-reviewed study found last week.
The study, published on JAMA Network, states that sleep-disordered breathing and sleep-related hypoxia do not increase the chances of contracting COVID-19, but rather contribute to the severity of the virus's clinical outcomes in those who test positive – resulting in hospitalizations in certain situations.
More than 5,000 people were involved in the study, which was led by a team of Cleveland Clinic researchers. All participants had an available sleep study record.
More than a third (35.8%) of those involved tested positive for the novel coronavirus. All patients were tested between March and November of last year.
The average age of all patients was 56.4 years old and the majority of participants in the study were women.
Researchers stated that sleep-related hypoxia, a state in which oxygen is not available in sufficient amounts at the tissue level, needs to be identified in a simpler manner.