London, Apr 1 (IANS): Snorers are three times more likely to suffer a potentially fatal blood clot, a new study has found.

Patients diagnosed with the snoring-related condition -- sleep apnoea -- were three times as likely to develop a deep vein thrombosis, a blood clot that forms within a vein, as non-snorers, the Daily Express reported.

The condition is usually linked to immobility, such as in patients lying in hospital beds for long periods after surgery or in long-haul airline passengers.

The latest investigation, carried out by a team of researchers in Taiwan is one of the first to show a link with DVTs, even though previous studies have suggested sleep apnoea may raise the risk of heart attacks.

A DVT is a blood clot in a vein, usually in the leg, which can break off and cause a life-threatening blockage in the lung, known as a pulmonary embolism.

An estimated three million people in Britain suffer with sleep apnoea.

The results of the research have been published in the American Journal of Medicine.