New research suggests that people who suffer from a sleep disorder have an increased risk for hospitalization and mortality caused by COVID-19. The study from Cleveland Clinic has found this relationship, noting that patients with sleep-disordered breathing and sleep-related hypoxia (sleep apnea) do not have an increased risk of developing COVID-19. Still, they do seem to have more severe outcomes from the disease. The study published in JAMA Network Open was conducted to help improve the ability to predict who has a more severe illness so that healthcare workers can help those more at risk prevent severe symptoms. Researchers believe this new information improved their understanding of the association between sleep disorders and the risk for adverse COVID-19 outcomes. The study concluded with a suggestion that biomarkers of inflammation may mediate the relationship between COVID-19 and sleep disorders. Researchers used Cleveland Clinic’s COVID-19 research registry for the study, which includes …