Alzheimer’s Disease Neuropathology in the Hippocampus and Brainstem of People with Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Lead investigator Professor Stephen Robinson said scientists have known the two diseases are related, but what drives the connection is still unclear.

“We know that if you have sleep apnea in mid-life, you’re more likely to develop Alzheimer’s when you’re older, and if you have Alzheimer’s you are more likely to have sleep apnea than other people your age,” he said.

I’m sure you are aware that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a serious condition that occurs when a person’s breathing is repeatedly interrupted during sleep. Many feel that snoring can be annoying but do not connect that it could be a red flag for sleep disordered breathing. 

Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia, affecting up to 70% of all people with dementia, with age the biggest risk factor for developing the disease.

OSA is increasingly common, affecting more than 936 million people worldwide and up to 30% of elderly people. And OSA is a treatable problem. This is great news if you have OSA, because you can get treatment for it, and decrease your risk of developing dementia.

I want to share some anatomy of your brain– the hippocampus is the part of the brain associated with memory. In Alzheimer’s disease, plaques and tangles will appear in the hippocampus, before spreading to the rest of the cortex.

This study is an important advancement in our understanding of the links between sleep apnea and dementia and opens up new directions for researchers striving to develop therapies for treating, and hopefully preventing, Alzheimer’s disease.