Research progress in relationship between sleep disorders and cardiovascular diseases

Sleep forms an essential part of daily life, which is conducive to the clearance of metabolites including β-amyloid protein, adenosine and toxins. Moreover, the recovery from mental and physical exertions relies on a good sleep. With the high-speed development of society, the incidence of sleep disorders grows rapidly and the proportion and severity of cardiovascular diseases also increase. The close relationship between the two complications has been demonstrated widely and the underlying mechanisms involve the remodeling of hypothalamus, sympathetic nerves, brain stem reticular structure, hormone, immune system and humoral factors. In this review, the recent progress in the relationship between sleep disorders and cardiovascular diseases, research on the mechanism as well as the therapeutic explorations were summarized.