Study Reveals Why Pregnant Women Snore

LONDON (Reuters Health) - Pregnant women have narrower upper airways than other women, which might explain why they are more likely to snore, a new study reveals.

The investigation of 137 women was carried out by doctors at the Edinburgh Sleep Center. They found that the upper airways narrow when women are in their third trimester of pregnancy. Women with preeclampsia, a potentially life-threatening pregnancy complication, had even narrower airways.

The researchers, led by Professor Neil Douglas, said at a recent British Thoracic Society meeting that changes in the upper airway could contribute to increased blood pressure for women with preeclampsia.

"Snoring is common in pregnancy and snoring pregnant women have increased rates of preeclampsia," they noted.

Preeclampsia affects up to 5% of first-time pregnancies and is a major cause of maternal and fetal illness and death. Risk factors include age, a previous history of the condition, diabetes and kidney disease.

A pregnant woman with the condition may develop dangerously high blood pressure and begin excreting protein in the urine.

To assess the significance of snoring in the development of preeclampsia, researchers recruited 50 women in the third trimester of pregnancy, 50 non-pregnant women and 37 women already diagnosed with preeclampsia.

Using a technique called acoustic reflection, the investigators measured the dimensions of each patient's upper airway.

The results showed airways were narrower in pregnant women than in those not expecting babies and narrower yet in women with preeclampsia. They also showed that three out of four women affected by the condition snored in their sleep, compared with 28% of pregnant women and 14% of non-pregnant women.

"These changes could contribute to the increased snoring in pregnancy and to the upper airways resistance episodes during sleep in preeclampsia, which may further increase blood pressure," the researchers report.

Mike Rich, spokesman for the lobby group Action on Preeclampsia, said the results were interesting but stressed that snoring alone was not the cause of preeclampsia.

"Preeclampsia is caused by a restriction in the development of the arteries and veins between the placenta and the mother's body. This develops in the first trimester of pregnancy," Rich said.

"Snoring may have a peripheral impact but it's unlikely to cause preeclampsia because it will already be there," he added.

Reference Source 89

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