Snoring and chronic bronchitis linked

ANSAN, South Korea, Jan. 29 (UPI) -- Researchers in South Korea have linked frequent snoring with the development of chronic bronchitis.

The study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, found individuals who snore regularly -- six or seven times per week -- were 68 percent more likely to develop chronic bronchitis than those who didn't snore. Those who snored five times or less per week were 25 percent more likely to develop bronchitis.

"The mechanisms underlying the association between snoring and chronic bronchitis are largely unknown," the study authors said in a statement. "It has been suggested that structural or functional changes in the airway due to inflammation may cause snoring and obstructive sleep apnea syndrome. Conversely, repeated snoring vibrations may act as mechanical stresses, leading to increased inflammatory response in the upper airway."

Inkyung Baik, of Korea University Ansan Hospital, in Ansan, South Korea, and colleagues studied 4,270 men and women over a four-year period.

Chronic bronchitis was defined as having a cough and phlegm produced during cough on most days for at least three months per year for at least two years without having a diagnosis of asthma.