Influence of snoring on in incidence of metabolic syndrome: a community-based prospective cohort study in rural Northeast China

Background: There is increasing trend of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in rural areas of China in recent years. It is necessary to figure out the possible risk factors of MetS for better intervention. This community-based prospective cohort study was performed to assess the relationship between snoring status and incidence of MetS. Methods: We conducted a cohort study among residents aged ≥ 35 years without MetS in 2012-2013. Among 5,691 residents who met the inclusion criteria, 4,980 residents (2,586 men and 2394 women; follow-up proportion: 87.5%) remained available for follow-up examinations during 2015-2017. The main outcome was the incidence of MetS, defined by the unify criteria in 2009. We divided residents by snoring status and compared outcome between groups. Using a logistic regression model, we estimated the odds ratio (OR) for incidence for MetS, adjusting for confounders, ages, gender, exercise habit, sleep duration, alcohol and smoke consumption. Results: With a median follow up of 4.6 years, incidence of MetS was higher in snorers (men 26.2%, women 33.5%) than in non-snorers (men 19.7%, women 23.2%). Diastolic blood pressure increased in follow-up compared with baseline in male snorers but decreased in male non-snorers. Similarly, fast blood glucose level increased in female snorers at follow-up but decreased in female non-snorers. We found a significant association between snoring and incidence of MetS (adjusted OR=1.51, 95%CI=1.32-1.74). Besides, as the degrees of the snoring increased, the incidence of MetS increased simultaneously. And the OR for the very severe snoring was double compared with non-snorers (adjusted OR=2.10, 95%CI=1.38-3.20). Conclusion: Snoring is associated with higher incidence of MetS in rural Northeast Chinese. More emphasis should be paid to residents with snoring problem.