Neurocognitive function in obstructive sleep apnoea: A meta‐review

Abstract

Adult obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is associated with cognitive dysfunction. While many review articles have attempted to summarize the evidence for this association, it remains difficult to determine which domains of cognition are affected by OSA. This is because of marked differences in the nature of these reviews (e.g. many are unsystematic) and the many different tasks and domains assessed. This paper addresses this issue by comparing the results of only systematic reviews or meta-analyses assessing the effects of OSA on cognition, the relationship between OSA severity and cognition, and/or the effects of treatment on cognition in OSA. Electronic databases and hand-searching were undertaken to select reviews that reported on these areas. We found 33 reviews; five reviews met predetermined, stringent selection criteria. The majority of reviews supported deficits in attention/vigilance, delayed long-term visual and verbal memory, visuospatial/constructional abilities, and executive function in individuals with OSA. There is also general agreement that language ability and psychomotor function are unaffected by OSA. Data are equivocal for the effects of OSA on working memory, short-term memory and global cognitive functioning. Attention/ vigilance dysfunction appears to be associated with sleep fragmentation and global cognitive function with hypoxaemia. Continuous positive airway pressure treatment of OSA appears to improve executive dysfunction, delayed long-term verbal and visual memory, attention/vigilance and global cognitive functioning. In order to improve our understanding of cognitive dysfunction in OSA, future research should pay particular attention to participant characteristics, measures of disease severity and choice of neuropsychological tests.

The association between obstructive sleep apnea and Alzheimer's disease: a meta-analysis perspective

“…Also, several studies over years have shown an indirect association between excessive daytime sleepiness and the development of cognitive decline (Jaussent et al, 2012;Keage et al, 2012). Additionally, beneficial effects of treatment of OSA, on cognitive performance, vigilance and excessive daytime sleepiness have been shown in recent meta-analyses (Marshall et al, 2006;Olaithe et al, 2014) and a meta review (Bucks et al, 2013). These data have recently been extended to show the beneficial effects of the CPAP therapy on excessive daytime sleepiness in older OSA patients (McMillan et al, 2014).…”

Excessive sleepiness and the risk of obstructive apnoea syndrome in professional ambulance drivers

“…Kod pacijenata sa nedijagnostikovanom ili nelečenom OSA se javljaju i poremeća-ji neurokognitivnih funkcija u domenu pažnje, memorije i izvršnih funkcija [41], što dovodi do problema u svakodnevnim aktivnostima. Opada radna sposobnost, uz porast rizika od povređivanja na radu (relativni rizik 2,88) i odsustvovanja sa posla [42,43].…”

Perioperative Complications in Obstructive Sleep Apnea Patients

“…Sleep fragmentation is thought to lead to attention/vigilance dysfunction while global cognitive dysfunction may result from intermittent nocturnal hypoxemia [71]. OSA has been suggested to be a possible predisposing factor for delirium [72].…”