TREATING SLEEP APNOEA IN ALZHEIMER’S PATIENTS HELPS COGNITION.
Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment seems to improve cognitive functioning in patients with Alzheimer’s disease who also suffer from obstructive sleep apnea, according to the results of a randomized clinical trial conducted at the University of California, San Diego. The study – led by Sonia Ancoli-Israel, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry at the UC San Diego School of Medicine and one of the nation’s preeminent experts in the field of sleep disorders and sleep research in aging populations – was published in the November issue of the Journal of the American Geriatric Society. The research team, including physicians from UC San Diego’s departments of psychiatry, medicine, neurosciences and family and preventive medicine, and Veteran’s Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, looked at 52 men and women with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). OSA is a breathing disorder characterized by brief interruptions of breathing during sleep, caused by a temporary, partial, or complete blockage in the airway. The prevalence of OSA in patients with dementia has been estimated to be as high as 70 to 80 percent.
CPAP REDUCES INCIDENCE OF CARDIOVASCULAR EVENTS AND HYPERTENSION IN OSA PATIENTS
In non-sleepy patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), treatment with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) can reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events and hypertension, according to researchers from Spain.
The research will be presented at the ATS 2010 International Conference in New Orleans.
FATIGUE AND TIREDNESS IN PEOPLE WITH OSA IMPROVE WITH CPAP TREATMENT.
FA study in the 15 June issue of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine shows that the complaints of fatigue and tiredness in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) improved significantly with good adherence to continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy, suggesting that – like the symptom of excessive daytime sleepiness – these complaints are important symptoms of OSA.
AT-HOME SLEEP TESTING EQUAL TO OVERNIGHT IN A SLEEP LAB IN TREATMENT RESULTS
Patients with suspected obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may no longer have to spend an expensive and uncomfortable night at a sleep center to monitor their sleep-disordered breathing. According to new research, those who performed sleep testing in their home with portable monitors showed similar improvements after three months of treatment with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) in daytime function as compared to patients who underwent overnight testing in a sleep center. Furthermore, patient adherence to CPAP over the first three months of treatment was similar in patients with OSA who received home versus in-lab testing.