Global warming may increase the burden of obstructive sleep apnea

Bastien Lechat (), Jack Manners, Lucía Pinilla, Amy C. Reynolds, Hannah Scott, Daniel Vena, Sebastien Bailly, Josh Fitton, Barbara Toson, Billingsley Kaambwa, Robert J. Adams, Jean-Louis Pepin, Pierre Escourrou, Peter Catcheside and Danny J. Eckert
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Bastien Lechat: Flinders University
Jack Manners: Flinders University
Lucía Pinilla: Flinders University
Amy C. Reynolds: Flinders University
Hannah Scott: Flinders University
Daniel Vena: Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School
Sebastien Bailly: CHU Grenoble Alpes
Josh Fitton: Flinders University
Barbara Toson: Flinders University
Billingsley Kaambwa: Sturt Road
Robert J. Adams: Flinders University
Jean-Louis Pepin: CHU Grenoble Alpes
Pierre Escourrou: Centre Interdisciplinaire du Sommeil
Peter Catcheside: Flinders University
Danny J. Eckert: Flinders University

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-11

Abstract: Abstract High ambient temperatures are associated with reduced sleep duration and quality, but effects on obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) severity are unknown. Here we quantify the effect of 24 h ambient temperature on nightly OSA severity in 116,620 users of a Food and Drug Administration-cleared nearable over 3.5 years. Wellbeing and productivity OSA burden for different levels of global warming were estimated. Globally, higher temperatures (99th vs. 25th; 27.3 vs. 6.4 °C) were associated with a 45% higher probability of having OSA on a given night (mean [95% confidence interval]; 1.45 [1.44, 1.47]). Warming-related increase in OSA prevalence in 2023 was estimated to be associated with a loss of 788,198 (489,226, 1,087,170) healthy life years (in 29 countries), and a workplace productivity loss of 30 (21 to 40) billion United States dollars. Scenarios with projected temperatures ≥1.8 °C above pre-industrial levels would incur a further 1.2 to 3-fold increase in OSA burden by 2100.

Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-60218-1

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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-60218-1

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