Sleep Apnea Linked to Depression

Previously, a number of small-scale studies involving specific subpopulations have suggested that obstructive sleep apnea is linked to depression, with the depression often improving in patients with sleep apnea who were treated with continuous positive airway pressure. Anne G. Wheaton, from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC; Georgia, USA), and colleagues analyzed data collected on 9,714 individuals enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys from 2005 to 2008.  A diagnosis of sleep apnea was associated with depression in both men and women subjects.  Men who reported having been diagnosed with sleep apnea had twice the risk of depression, as compared with those without apnea.  For women, the risk for depression was fivefold higher with sleep apnea.  The study authors conclude that: “Frequent snorting/stopping breathing was associated with probable major depression by [a standardized assessment scale] in a national sample of adults.”