Snoring increases the risk of stroke and adversely affects prognosis.

In a case-controlled study we recruited 400 patients admitted to hospital with stroke and 400 community controls matched for age, gender and family practitioner. Snoring history was obtained from 326 patients and 345 controls. Odds ratio for admission to hospital with stroke was 3.2 (95 per cent confidence intervals 2.3-4.4) for regular snorers against those who did not snore regularly. This risk was independent for age, gender and other risk factors for stroke. Snoring did not increase the chances of stroke during sleep. Level of consciousness was reduced more frequently in snorers (p = 0.0003). As the frequency of snoring increased so did the mortality to 6 months (p = 0.0006). Snoring is an important risk factor for stroke and adversely affects the prognosis in patients admitted to hospital with stroke.