Background and aim Short sleep duration is a risk factor of cardiovascular disorder; however, the association between short sleep duration and carotid atherosclerosis has not been completely characterised. The aim of this study is to investigate the association between short sleep duration and carotid atherosclerosis.

Methods We used the cross-sectional data collected between May 2014 and July 2014, which were based on a cardiovascular disease cohort study including 3798 participants aged 40 years and older who are residents of Beijing, China. We used logistic regression models to examine the associations between sleep duration and carotid atherosclerosis.

Results After the adjustment of covariates, short sleep duration (less than 5 hours per night) was found to be associated with carotid atherosclerosis, and it also elevated the risk of, in both terms, the increment of prevalence (OR=1.31, P<0.05) and the quantity of carotid plaques (OR=1.28, P<0.05). When age was also taken into consideration, the largest association, in both terms of prevalence (OR=3.46, P<0.01) and the number of carotid plaques (OR=4.23, P<0.01), was found in subjects over the age of 60 with short sleep duration.

Conclusion In conclusion, sleep duration less than 5 hours per night is associated with a higher risk of carotid atherosclerosis compared with subjects who sleeps for 5 or over 5 hours per night, and the association may be modified by age.