Medical Director of Sleep Medicine, Chief Transformation Officer, Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute at Baptist Health South Florida, Professor at Florida International University
OSA is strongly associated with high blood pressure, abnormal heart rhythm, heart attack, stroke, and heart failure. In patients with heart failure, excessive fluid in the upper airway is an additional factor that may contribute to the airway narrowing. Changes in pressure of the chest related to sleep apnea cause stress on the heart, and this effect is greater in those with heart failure.