Neuropsychological functioning in older insomniacs with or without obstructive sleep apnea

The relationships between neuropsychological functioning and sleep loss, sleep apnea, and hypoxemia were examined. Forty-five older insomniacs (M age = 64.6 years) with or without sleep apnea were administered neuropsychological tests after 1 night of nocturnal monitoring in a sleep laboratory. The results showed few differences on cognitive and psychomotor performance between individuals with sleep disruptions alone compared with those whose insomnia was associated with sleep apnea and hypoxemia. There were no significant relationships between nocturnal sleep and respiratory variables and daytime functioning. Furthermore, cognitive and psychomotor performance in older insomniacs with or without sleep apnea revealed minimal impairment compared with age-matched normative data. The results suggest that when the severity of sleep disruptions is controlled, there are minimal differences in neuropsychological functioning of older adults with mild to moderate sleep apnea compared with those without apnea.