The World's First Long-Term, Large-Scale Sleep Apnea Study: "Early Treatment Needed to Prevent Brain Damage"

Professor Yoon Chang-ho's Team at Bundang Seoul National University Hospital
Confirms Brain Damage from Persistent Sleep Apnea
Untreated Cases May Cause Cognitive Impairment
Management Needed for Mild Cases as Well as Severe Ones

Professor Yoon Chang-ho, Department of Neurology, Bundang Seoul National University Hospital.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] Domestic researchers have confirmed the effects of long-term sleep apnea on the adult brain and cognitive function through large-scale longitudinal observation. It was found that if sleep apnea persists, it can lead to brain function decline, and if left untreated, it may cause cognitive impairments such as dementia.

The neurology team led by Professor Yoon Chang-ho at Bundang Seoul National University Hospital announced on the 31st that they conducted the world's first study to confirm the effects of sleep apnea on adult brain structure and cognitive function through long-term, large-scale longitudinal observation.

Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder symptom in which breathing stops for more than 10 seconds or the upper airway frequently narrows during sleep, disrupting breathing and lowering sleep quality, causing fatigue and decreased concentration. Previous sleep apnea studies often had short follow-up or observation periods or small sample sizes, so there has been no research clarifying the effects on patients when sleep apnea continues long-term.

Accordingly, the research team classified 1,110 adults into ▲Normal group (negative in both 1st and 2nd tests) ▲Improved group (positive in 1st test, negative in 2nd) ▲Developed group (negative in 1st test, positive in 2nd) ▲Persistent group (positive in both 1st and 2nd tests), and compared and analyzed brain magnetic resonance imaging (brain MRI) and neurocognitive test results at 4-year intervals between the 1st (2011?2014) and 2nd (2015?2018) tests.

As a result, in the sleep apnea developed group, damage was confirmed in brain areas related to concentration and visual information processing functions, but in the improved group, recovery of the damaged visual memory pathways was observed. In the persistent group, brain damage related to visual memory was found, and these changes were more pronounced in those aged 60 and above and in males.

Although most of the sleep apnea developed group participants in this study had mild apnea, cognitive decline and brain damage were confirmed, suggesting that while previously only severe sleep apnea was treated, now mild sleep apnea also requires treatment and management, the research team explained.

Professor Yoon stated, “Through this study, we found that early diagnosis and treatment of sleep apnea lead to better prognosis,” and emphasized, “In the rapidly aging society, active medical care and treatment are necessary to reduce the incidence of dementia and cognitive impairments.”

Meanwhile, this study was conducted as a joint research project supported by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, involving Professor Shin Cheol of the Department of Respiratory Medicine at Korea University Ansan Hospital and Professor Robert Thomas of Harvard Medical School. The research results were published in ‘JAMA Network Open,’ a journal issued by the American Medical Association.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.