A 68-year-old hospitalized patient with chronic obstructive…
A 68-year-old hospitalized patient with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) reports severe daytime fatigue despite spending 8 hours in bed each night. The nurse reviews the patient’s overnight polysomnography, which shows frequent arousals during NREM sleep and multiple brief awakenings without full consciousness. Which physiological mechanism most accurately explains the patient’s persistent fatigue?