Disturbances to the sleep-wake cycle predict future diagnoses of Alzheimer’s disease.
Wednesday, Oct 17, 2012, 10:00 AM -11:00 AM
, O. THEOU
, B. RUSAK
, K. ROCKWOOD
Psychology, Dept. of Psychiatry, Halifax, NS, Canada;
Medicine; Divison of Geriatric Med.,
Psychiatry and Psychology/Neuroscience, Dalhousie Univ., Halifax, NS, Canada
Prominent behavioral changes are common in individuals with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), including alterations in sleep and rest-activity patterns. Patients with early AD commonly complain of a fragmented sleep-wake pattern, or decreased daytime activity and disrupted nighttime sleep. In addition, increased daytime sleepiness is associated with a significant decline in cognitive functioning in AD patients. In a mouse model, sleep deprivation can increase beta-amyloid deposition, a key neuropathological feature of AD that may contribute to neurocognitive decline. Whether changes in the sleep-wake cycle contribute to or reflect the development of AD remains unclear. We undertook a secondary analysis of data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) to gain further insight into this issue. We examined specifically whether reported disturbances in the sleep-wake cycle are predictive of developing AD, independently of cognitive decline. SHARE is a multidisciplinary, longitudinal examination of the aging process involving 31,115 participants aged 50 or over and their spouses from 12 European countries. In cognitively healthy individuals, the use of sleep medication, having restless sleep, not having a lot of energy, feeling tired, and not feeling rested upon awakening, are predictive of AD diagnosis at a 2 year follow up, controlling for age and body mass index. These findings suggest that sleep disturbances contribute to or reflect early stages in the development of AD. In particular, increased sleep and/or sleepiness during the daytime appears to contribute to an increased risk of receiving a diagnosis of AD. This information indicates that altered sleep-wake patterns mark an early, preclinical stage of developing AD in the absence of cognitive symptoms. Further characterization of the changes in sleep-wake regulation in aging populations may contribute to early identification of those at risk of a diagnosis of AD, and may suggest appropriate treatment interventions at the earliest possible stages of the illness.
Consultant/Advisory Board; Institut Internationale de Recherches Servier.
Employment; President & Chief Scientific Officer: DementiaGuide Inc.. Speakers Bureau/Honoraria; Bristol Myers Squibb at ICA, Hawaii. Consultant/Advisory Board; Elan/Wyeth North American on bapeneuzemab.
Dalhousie Medical Research Foundation
Dalhouise Killam Trusts
[Authors]. [Abstract Title]. Program No. XXX.XX. 2012 Neuroscience Meeting Planner. New Orleans, LA: Society for Neuroscience, 2012. Online.
2012 Copyright by the Society for Neuroscience all rights reserved. Permission to republish any abstract or part of any abstract in any form must be obtained in writing by SfN office prior to publication.
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