San Francisco: A new large-scale study presented at the ATS 2025 International Conference has found that rising global temperatures are closely linked to the worsening severity of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a common yet serious sleep disorder. The findings raise major public health concerns, suggesting that climate change may significantly intensify the societal burden of OSA over the coming decades.
Conducted by researchers at FHMRI: Sleep Health, Flinders University, the study analyzed sleep data from more than 116,000 users worldwide. Each participant used an under-mattress sensor validated to monitor and estimate OSA severity, generating around 500 sleep measurements per user. Researchers then compared this data with 24-hour ambient temperature readings extracted from global climate models.
The analysis revealed a clear association: warmer nighttime temperatures were linked to a 45% higher likelihood of experiencing OSA on a given night. Interestingly, the degree of impact varied by region, with European countries showing a stronger correlation between rising temperatures and OSA severity compared to regions like the United States and Australia.
“This study really highlights the societal burden associated with the increase in OSA prevalence due to rising temperatures,” said Dr. Bastien Lechat, senior research fellow at Flinders University. “We were surprised by the magnitude of the association.”
To understand the broader consequences, the research team conducted extensive modeling that included factors such as disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), productivity losses, and overall health economics. Their projections showed that under the most likely climate change scenarios—with temperature increases of 2°C or more—the burden of OSA could double or even triple globally by the year 2100.
Alarmingly, the study also concluded that climate change has already increased the OSA burden by 50% to 100% since the year 2000.
Dr. Lechat emphasized the urgent need for both climate action and public health strategies. “The high prevalence of undiagnosed and untreated OSA amplifies the effect of global warming on the societal burden,” he said. Increasing diagnosis and treatment rates could help reduce both health risks and productivity losses caused by the disorder.
The study underscores the intersection between climate change and chronic health conditions, highlighting the need for comprehensive global efforts to mitigate its effects on human well-being.