Sleep apnea, heart disease, and Alzheimer's Disease

neversleeps · Post by **neversleeps** » Thu Oct 27, 2005 3:51 pm

Did anyone know this? I didn't!

I've been doing a bit of personal research on Alzheimer's Disease and discovered there is a proven genetic link between sleep apnea, heart disease, and Alzheimer's.* There is a genetic marker called apolipoprotein E e4. The presence of this marker is scientifically proven to be a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular disease, and sleep apnea:"Having the marker, apolipoprotein E e4 (APOE e4), translates into about a twofold increase in risk for having sleep apnea," said one of the study's authors, Dr. Emmanuel Mignot, director of the Center for Narcolepsy at Stanford University School of Medicine in California.

Mignot said this study shows how important it is for doctors to look at the whole body rather than just one organ. "Everything is connected," he said. "Our theory is that for some people, sleep apnea might be the first sign of a problem in their brain that could manifest later as Alzheimer's disease."

I don't know if I have the marker. I know having the marker doesn't mean heart disease and Alzheimer's Disease are inevitable. I know I have sleep apnea. I know my dad has sleep apnea. I know my parents have Alzheimer's Disease and Vascular Dementia. I know I'm worried.

Now the question is, should I have a test done to find out if I have it? On the one hand, knowledge is power. On the other hand, what good will it do to know?

*Alzheimer's risk factor tied to apnea

Colorado Jan · Post by **Colorado Jan** » Thu Oct 27, 2005 4:12 pm

I was thinking along those same lines. My mom at age 82 has dementia and, although she has never been overweight, she's been a pretty good snorer all her life. Never diagnosed with sleep apnea...but no one ever thought about it either......Hers is vascular dementia....

But my hubby has said more than a few times in the past year that talking to me has become a little like talking to my mom...in that I don't remember a lot of things, don't have any thoughts to share on subjects, etc. (Before cpap...some of those brain cells are coming back, thankfully).

But it does make you wonder about the connection and now you have found it.

I don't want to know if I have that genetic marker. My maternal grandmother was a little "vague" as I recall. My mom is better now with massive doses of vitamin E and also Aricept, the Alzheimer's drug. I'm just going to try to stay active, healthy and hope for the best.

Jan in Colo.

RED SOX · Post by **RED SOX** » Thu Oct 27, 2005 8:08 pm

NEVERSLEEPS::

This is one of the best and most informative articles I've ever seen posted
here.

Thanks for passing it on !!!!

wkwchau · Post by **wkwchau** » Thu Oct 27, 2005 9:01 pm

I don't know if I have the marker. I know having the marker doesn't mean heart disease and Alzheimer's Disease are inevitable. I know I have sleep apnea. I know my dad has sleep apnea. I know my parents have Alzheimer's Disease and Vascular Dementia. I know I'm worried.

Now the question is, should I have a test done to find out if I have it? On the one hand, knowledge is power. On the other hand, what good will it do to know?

It is a useful information, but I don't think you should worry about it.

Remember each research study is only a small step toward a complete picture. These studies show that the APOE e4 marker is some what correlated to the apnea and Alzheimer's disease. However, it does NOT mean the Alzheimer has any correlation with sleep apnea. It is possible that the people have the marker and apnea may have less chance to get Alzheimer's disease. A further study is needed to test this hypothesis.

There are lots of factors cause the disease. I suggest don't waste the money for the test as it does not tell you anything about the chance of getting Alzheimer's disease. The proactive approach to fend off the disease is to exercise your brain more (http://www.fi.edu/brain/exercise.htm#exerciseaging) and not worrying about your chance to get it.

Barb (Seattle) · Post by **Barb (Seattle)** » Thu Oct 27, 2005 9:51 pm

Great. wonderful. scary. My grandmother had Alzheimer Disease...my mom had it...and snored. I've been kind of scared for years about this.
What makes me wonder is if the people who HAVE Alzheimers today could have been PREVENTED from having this if they had been on CPAP. Think I'll definitely be using my machine tonight!!!!!!!

rested gal · Post by **rested gal** » Thu Oct 27, 2005 10:04 pm

Very interesting links, neversleeps and wkwchau! Thanks!!

Colorado Jan · Post by **Colorado Jan** » Thu Oct 27, 2005 10:08 pm

What makes me wonder is if the people who HAVE Alzheimers today could have been PREVENTED from having this if they had been on CPAP
_________________________________________________

I don't know about preventing Alzheimers, but seems like CPAP could definitely help prevent vascular dementia.......

Jan in Colo.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Thu Oct 27, 2005 10:54 pm

Ask yourself, what would you do different if you KNEW you had an E4 allele, or worse, double E4/E4? If it's Alzheimer's that worries you, there are quite a number of dietary and lifestyle factors that are considered (but not proven) to be protective. (i.e. folic acid, statins, EGCG (green tea), stimulating mental activity, and a respectable list of other things).

Given that sleep apnea, or Alzheimer's is not one-to-one correlated with the E4 gene, that is, having the gene doesn't mean you'll get the disease, and conversely not having the gene doesn't mean you are protected, one should do whatever one can to minimize the odds of getting the disease just as a matter of practice.

For what it's worth, some years back, I just HAD to know, and was tested for the Apolipoprotein E allele. My family practice doctor was kind enough to order the test, I'm not sure how he justified it medically. But he did it. And it was good news. And I have less anxiety. But I still do everything I would if I were in the high risk category. I think it's probably good for me.

In retrospect, I might be as well off if I didn't have the test and merely assumed I DID have the bad gene, and live accordingly. The difference being, I can now wake up in the morning, pound my chest, give a loud TARZAN YELL, and announce to the world with great confidence that I won't die of Alzheimer's like all my crazy relatives! YEEEEEEEEE HAWWWWWWW!

(oops, got carried away)

Some people (like me) just HAFTA know. Some actually DON'T want to know. It would be unfortunate if one were tested negative and then slacked off in living a good and healthy lifestyle. In fact diet and lifestyle may well turn out to be the more important factor, genetics being merely a predisposition to said disease state. There is still so much yet to be learned.

FJC · Post by **FJC** » Fri Oct 28, 2005 4:57 am

Barb (Seattle) wrote: What makes me wonder is if the people who HAVE Alzheimers today could have been PREVENTED from having this if they had been on CPAP. Think I'll definitely be using my machine tonight!!!!!!!

Wouldn't it be something if it were discovered that a major contributor to Alzheimer's was untreated sleep apnea? Perhaps the low O2 and excessive tiredness/lack of REM sleep over years/decades causes or accelerates the disease...

NOzsnAZ · Post by **NOzsnAZ** » Fri Oct 28, 2005 10:48 am

From the moment I thought I might have OSA, I worried what all that lack of oxygen could be doing to my brain and my body. We all know that OSA DOES IN FACT affect so many other aspects of our health. It wouldn't be much of a stretch to think it is possibly profoundly affecting our brain - in the longer term.

My mother, brother and father all have/had OSA. My father who recently past away also had been diagnosed with Dementia/Alzheimer's.

Food for thought.

NOzsnAZ

arthuranxious · Post by **arthuranxious** » Fri Sep 29, 2006 7:41 am

Yesterday I saw a COPD patient (as a non-physician counselling hospital patients) with a large BiPAP machine beside her bed, and reviewed her case history with her. She mentioned that since her last hospitalization she had been diagnosed by her pulmonologist with sleep apnea and put on CPAP, she added that she has been diagnosed with early stage dementia (she is nearly 70 and has had a long history of health problems). Even though she is a DNR with a generally poor prognosis, the pulmonologist told her taht keeping enough oxygen flowing to the brain is likely to slow the progress of dementia while the low oxygen levels will speed her decline. He had her do 4 overnight sleep studies this year to evaluate if oxygen alone would relieve her desaturation problem, and concluded that she needs both.
Quite logical, but interesting... who knows how much oxygen flow to the brain is responsible for dementia and Alzheimer-like symptoms.
I should add that those in the medical field assume that lots of people who are labeled as "alzheimers patients" are really suffering from vascular dementia. And the genetic test doesn't yield information about senility caused by other things.

Bamalady · Post by **Bamalady** » Fri Sep 29, 2006 12:38 pm

This thread is interesting to me because I am having problems with my vascular system (I have also been doing some research). I will go the 10/25 for my third stent. They also recently found a very small 2.5 mm aneurysm near my right eye. My first stent was done in 2000. I was diagnosed with Sleep Apnea last Fall. I am eager to see if CPap treatment will slow down the damage to my vascular system.

Here is another article on OSA and Vascular Disease that I found really interesting. It is a bit technical:

http://respiratory-research.com/content/2/6/315

Mybe they will be able to tie some problems together and improve treatment in several areas in the near future.

krousseau · Post by **krousseau** » Fri Sep 29, 2006 1:56 pm

When I was in nurses training the first time around 1960-Alzheimer's Disease was used to designate only early onset of dementia associated with old age (eg dementia starting in the 30's & 40's). By the time I went back to school in 1972 it was a type of dementia due to specific lesions in the brain and diagnosed only by a brain biopsy (and hence usually diagnosed on autopsy). Now it seems the term Alzheimers is a catch all term for any dementia.
Back to the question "would you want to know"-No-if you wouldn't take prescribed medications or make changes that might help prevent the disease or slow its progression. Yes, if it would motivate you to make lifestyle changes and reduce worry. Some people like to know others don't-you have to decide that for yourself.

Snoredog · Post by **Snoredog** » Fri Sep 29, 2006 2:22 pm

I wouldn't worry about, you cannot do anything about having the gene anyway.

Look at your grandparents, aunts and uncles, probably many of mine also had OSA and didn't know it, some died from sudden heart failure, many lived longer than I ever want to anyway. My grandfather died when he was 86, he was probably the perfect specimen in health, grew everything he ate. He was a passenger in a car by a friend and got broadsided on the hiway and was killed.

I have 4 older brothers, none of them have OSA, none of them have had a stroke, I've had 2 so far. None of them had skin cancer, I've had it twice in past 5yrs alone, first was malignant melanoma the second basil cell carcinoma, I go next month to get another one cut out.

The point is if you don't die from one disorder you'll probably die from another, then again something entirely unexepcted, no use worrying about it go have fun.

krousseau · Post by **krousseau** » Fri Sep 29, 2006 2:55 pm

.....and you are no "deader" from heart disease than you are from a car accident.

Sleep apnea, heart disease, and Alzheimer's Disease

Sleep apnea, heart disease, and Alzheimer's Disease

Re: Sleep apnea, heart disease, and Alzheimer's Disease

OSA and dementia

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