Sleep-Disordered Breathing, Hypoxia, and Risk of Mild Cognitive Impairment and Dementia in Older Women

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Abstract
Sleep-disordered breathing, a disorder characterized by recurrent arousals from sleep and intermittent hypoxemia, is common among older adults and affects up to 60% of elderly populations.1 A number of adverse health outcomes including hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes have been associated with sleep-disordered breathing.2-5 Cognitive impairment also has been linked to sleep-disordered breathing, but the majority of studies have been cross-sectional or have relied on nonobjective measures of sleep-disordered breathing, thus limiting the ability to draw conclusions on the directionality of the association.6-8 It remains unclear whether sleep-disordered breathing precedes cognitive impairment in community-dwelling elderly individuals.