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Association between snoring and heart rate variability in adolescents: effects of gender and insufficient sleep

  • Sleep Breathing Physiology and Disorders • Original Article
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Abstract

Purpose

We explored the association between subjective snoring frequency and heart rate variability (HRV) in a healthy adolescent population.

Methods

A total of 102 healthy adolescents were recruited from high schools in South Korea, and reported their sleep habits and snoring frequency. HRV was assessed to indirectly measure autonomic function. We assessed correlations between snoring frequency and HRV indices. We also investigated the effects of sex and behaviorally induced insufficient sleep syndrome (BISS) on the associations between HRV parameters and snoring frequency.

Results

Overall, significant correlations were apparent between snoring frequency and HRV indices including the standard deviation of the normal-to-normal intervals (SDNN) and the low-frequency/high-frequency (LF/HF) ratio. Associations were more evident in males and those with BISS compared to females and those without BISS.

Conclusions

Our findings suggest that snoring changes autonomic nervous system (ANS) activity in adolescents; the changes are more dramatic in males and those with insufficient sleep.

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Acknowledgments

The study was performed at Gachon University of Medicine and Science and Samsung Medical Center. All participants were evaluated in a laboratory at the Department of Psychiatry, Gachon University of Medicine and Science. The statistical analyses were performed, and the manuscript prepared, at Samsung Medical Center. All authors have read and approved of the manuscript.

Funding

This study was financially supported by the Brain Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF), which is funded by the Ministry of Science, ICT, and Future Planning (grant no. NRF-2016M3C7A1904338) and an NRF grant funded by the Korean government (no. NRF-2016R1A2B4011561).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University College of Medicine, 81 Irwon-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, 06351, Republic of Korea

    Sehyun Jeon & Seog Ju Kim

  2. Department of Psychiatry, Dongguk University Ilsan Hospital, Ilsan, Republic of Korea

    Seongmin Oh

  3. Department of Psychiatry, Gachon University of Medicine and Science, Incheon, Republic of Korea

    Seong-Jin Cho

  4. Department of Psychiatry Center for Sleep and Chronobiology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, 103 Daehak-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, 03080, Republic of Korea

    Yu Jin Lee

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  1. Sehyun Jeon
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  4. Yu Jin Lee
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Contributions

S.J.K. and Y.J.L. contributed equally to this study as corresponding authors. All authors have read and approved of the manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Yu Jin Lee or Seog Ju Kim.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the Institutional Review Board of Gachon University of Medicine and Science and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

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Jeon, S., Oh, S., Cho, SJ. et al. Association between snoring and heart rate variability in adolescents: effects of gender and insufficient sleep. Sleep Breath 24, 561–570 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-019-01883-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-019-01883-7

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