The American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine recently published a study from New York researchers that suggest that sleep apnea and Alzheimer’s are connected. Their study found that people with obstructive sleep apnea had higher levels of amyloid beta in their spinal fluid—a protein associated with Alzheimer’s.
Sleep apnea is a condition where patients either take shallow breaths or stop breathing while sleeping. It disrupts the sleep of up to 22 million people in the United States. The study focused on 208 otherwise-healthy sleep apnea patients, over half of which had obstructive sleep apnea. Those with OSA correlated with higher levels of amyloid beta.
The data suggests that sleep disturbance could “accelerate cognitive decline” for those who are at-risk for Alzheimer’s, according to a press release from researchers at the NYU School of Medicine. However, a co-author of the study clarified that the relationship hasn’t been discovered between sleep apnea, amyloid, and cognitive deterioration.
The data does suggest that the severity of sleep apnea is a predictor of cognitive deterioration.
What This Means for Doctors
If there is a relationship, then screening for sleep apnea may help doctors better predict a patient’s chances of developing Alzheimer’s. More importantly, it will motivate doctors to correct any sleep disturbance disorder in order to prevent Alzheimer’s later in life.
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