Effects of obstructive sleep apnea on cognitive function: A comparison between younger and older OSAS patients

Mathieu, A.; Mazza, S.; Décary, A.; Massicotte-Marquez, J.; Petit, D.; Gosselin, N.; Malo, J.; Montplaisir, J.

doi:10.1016/j.sleep.2007.03.014

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Volume 9, Issue 2 , Pages 112-120, January 2008

Effects of obstructive sleep apnea on cognitive function: A comparison between younger and older OSAS patients

A. Mathieu
- Centre d’étude du sommeil et des rythmes biologiques, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, 5400 boul. Gouin Ouest, Montréal, Que., Canada H4J 1C5
- Department of Medical Bioscience, Université de Montréal, Canada
S. Mazza
- Centre d’étude du sommeil et des rythmes biologiques, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, 5400 boul. Gouin Ouest, Montréal, Que., Canada H4J 1C5
A. Décary
- Centre d’étude du sommeil et des rythmes biologiques, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, 5400 boul. Gouin Ouest, Montréal, Que., Canada H4J 1C5
- Department of Psychiatry, Université de Montréal, Canada
J. Massicotte-Marquez
- Centre d’étude du sommeil et des rythmes biologiques, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, 5400 boul. Gouin Ouest, Montréal, Que., Canada H4J 1C5
- Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Canada
D. Petit
- Centre d’étude du sommeil et des rythmes biologiques, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, 5400 boul. Gouin Ouest, Montréal, Que., Canada H4J 1C5
N. Gosselin
- Centre d’étude du sommeil et des rythmes biologiques, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, 5400 boul. Gouin Ouest, Montréal, Que., Canada H4J 1C5
- Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Canada
J. Malo
- Service de pneumologie, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, 5400 boul. Gouin Ouest, Montréal, Que., Canada H4J 1C5
J. Montplaisir
- Centre d’étude du sommeil et des rythmes biologiques, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, 5400 boul. Gouin Ouest, Montréal, Que., Canada H4J 1C5
- Department of Psychiatry, Université de Montréal, Canada
- Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 514 338 2693; fax: +1 514 338 2531.

Received 3 November 2006; received in revised form 28 February 2007; accepted 8 March 2007.

Abstract

Background and purpose

Patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) present cognitive deficits similar to those observed with aging. The aim of the study was to assess the effects of age on cognitive functions in OSAS patients. It was hypothesized that older OSAS patients will exhibit significant cognitive dysfunction relative to younger OSAS patients and controls.

Patients and methods

Younger and older OSAS patients were compared to younger and older control subjects (age cut-off set at 50yrs). Participants underwent a polysomnographic (PSG) and neuropsychological evaluation. Variables were analyzed by two-way analyses of variance (ANOVAs) with two factors: Group (control and OSAS) and Age (younger and older). Additionally, we evaluated the contribution of attentional deficits to cognitive dysfunction for each subgroup of patients by using Spearman correlation coefficients.

Results

No Group-by-Age interaction was found for any neuropsychological variables (p<0.05). However, main Group and Age effects were found. Correlations indicated that attentional deficits contributed importantly to a poorer cognitive performance in younger OSAS patients only (p<0.01).

Conclusions

Our results are in agreement with those of the literature for both OSAS-related and aging-related cognitive deficits but did not demonstrate that age interacts with the effects of the OSAS condition to make those cognitive deficits worse.

Keywords: Age, Sleep apnea, Cognitive function, Daytime vigilance, Elderly