Dementia Care Research and Psychosocial Factors

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Gerontology
• Sleep Medicine

Background:

• Excessive Daytime Sleepiness (EDS) is linked to cognitive decline and Alzheimer's Disease risk.
• Limited research exists on EDS impact across diverse racial and sex groups in non-sleepy older adults.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between sleepiness scores and cognitive performance in healthy older adults.
• To determine if this association varies by race and sex.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional analysis of 186 cognitively normal older adults (White and Black).
• Sleepiness assessed using Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS); cognitive performance via UDS Neuropsychological Battery.
• Linear mixed effects models analyzed associations, controlling for relevant covariates and examining interaction effects (ESS*race, ESS*sex).

Main Results:

• No independent association found between ESS scores and overall cognitive performance.
• Race was associated with cognitive performance; Black individuals performed worse than White individuals.
• Sex influenced performance in memory (females better) and executive function (males better).
• Significant interaction between race and ESS on memory and language performance; higher sleepiness correlated with worse performance in Black individuals.

Conclusions:

• In a non-sleepy, cognitively healthy cohort, sleepiness scores did not independently affect cognitive performance.
• Race-specific effects were observed, particularly in memory and language domains, where higher sleepiness was linked to poorer performance among Black participants.
• These findings suggest potential race-based differences in how sleepiness impacts cognition in older adults.