Background Emerging observational evidence suggests frequent sleep issues among individuals with cardiovascular conditions. However, whether specific sleep traits causally contribute to venous thromboembolism (VTE)—including pulmonary embolism (PE) and deep vein thrombosis (DVT)—remains uncertain. Our study sought to investigate potential causal associations between ten sleep‐related factors and VTE occurrence. Methods Genetic variants representing 10 sleep traits (chronotype, daytime napping, daytime sleepiness, ease of getting up, insomnia, long sleep duration, short sleep duration, sleep apnea, sleep duration, and snoring) were extracted from large‐scale genetic studies comprising nearly 400,000 individuals of European descent. Genetic associations for VTE ( n = 474,015), PE ( n = 486,319), and DVT ( n = 432,223) were obtained from the FinnGen resource. An inverse‐variance weighted approach constituted the primary analysis, complemented by extensive sensitivity evaluations to validate the findings. Besides, reverse Mendelian randomization (MR) was performed to explore bidirectional relationships, and multivariate MR was adjusted for possible confounders. Results The MR analysis identified significant genetic correlations between preference for chronotype (odds ratio OR: 1.13; 95% confidence interval CI: 1.03–1.24; p = 0.009) and sleep apnea (OR: 1.17; 95% CI: 1.02–1.35; p = 0.027) with increased susceptibility to VTE. Frequent daytime napping specifically raised PE risk (OR: 1.13; 95% CI: 1.04–1.22; p = 0.004). Additional notable associations were observed for chronotype (PE; OR: 1.16; 95% CI: 1.03–1.30; p = 0.018), ease of getting up (PE; OR: 1.45; 95% CI: 1.01–2.08; p = 0.043), and short sleep duration (PE; OR: 2.76; 95% CI: 1.03–7.39; p = 0.043). These findings were confirmed via sensitivity checks. Multivariable MR analysis further suggested that a connection between sleep characteristics and VTE risk persisted after adjusting for potential confounders. Reverse causation from VTE back to sleep factors was not evident. Conclusion These data indicate that genetically influenced sleep‐related attributes may causally affect VTE risk, highlighting the potential benefits of targeting sleep quality improvements as preventive strategies against venous thromboembolic events.
Su et al. (Thu,) studied this question.