Obstructive sleep apnea treatment, slow wave activity, and amyloid-β

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) increases risk of dementia, a relationship that may be mediated by amyloid-beta (A beta) and downstream Alzheimer disease pathology. We previously showed that OSA may impair A beta clearance and affect the relationship between slow wave activity (SWA) and A beta. In this study, SWA and CSF A beta were measured in participants with OSA before and 1 to 4 months after treatment. OSA treatment increased SWA, and SWA was significantly correlated with lower A beta after treatment. Greater improvement in OSA was associated with greater decreases in A beta. We propose a model whereby OSA treatment may affect both A beta release and clearance. Ann Neurol 2018 ANN NEUROL 2019;85:291-295.