Mayo Clinic researchers found a connection between severe sleep apnea and lesions in the brain that could raise dementia and stroke risk.
They looked at data collected from 140 older adults with obstructive sleep apnea who had participated in an earlier study. These volunteers had undergone an
MRI brain scan and were monitored overnight in a sleep lab. They were divided into three groups based on their diagnosed degree of sleep apnea, but all of them were thought to be free of dementia at the start and end of the study period. Compared to people with mild or moderate sleep apnea, the researchers found, those with severe sleep apnea had a greater amount of white matter hyperintensities—tiny lesions in the brain’s white matter that can be seen on an
MRI. Those with severe apnea also tended to experience less slow-wave sleep, or deep sleep, and a lack of deep sleep was similarly associated with more white matter hyperintensities.White matter hyperintensities frequently become more common the older we get. But having a greater numberto a higher risk of conditions such as dementia and stroke.
“More research is needed to determine whether sleep issues affect these brain biomarkers or vice versa,” Carvalho said. “We also need to look at whether strategies to improve sleep quality or treatment of sleep apnea can affect the trajectory of these biomarkers.”
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