Persons with sleep apnea have been found to be at increased risk for a number of cardiovascular diseases. Notably, hypertension, stroke, coronary heart disease and irregular heartbeats have been found to be more common among those with disordered sleep than their peers without sleep abnormalities. Likewise, sleep apnea and hardening of the arteries appear to share some common physiological characteristics, further suggesting that sleep apnea may be an important predictor of cardiovascular disease. If you have high blood pressure, irregular heartbeats, heart disease or have had a stroke you should speak with your doctor about your sleep.