REM Sleep Behavior and Motor Findings in Parkinson’s Disease: A Cross-sectional Analysis

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) represents a major public health challenge that will only grow in our aging population. Understanding the connection between PD and associated prodromal conditions, such as rapid eye movement sleep behavioral disorder (RBD), is critical to identifying prevention strategies. However, the relationship between RBD and severity of motor findings in early PD is unknown. This study aims to examine this relationship. Methods: The study population consisted of 418 PD patients who completed the Movement Disorders Society‐United Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS‐UPDRS) and rapid eye movement sleep (REM) disorder questionnaires at the baseline visit of the Michael J. Fox's Parkinson's Progression Markers Initiative (PPMI). Cross‐sectional analysis was carried out to assess the association between REM Sleep Behavior Screening Questionnaire score and MDS UPDRS‐3 (motor) score categories. Correlation with a higher score category was described as “worse motor findings”. A score of 5 on the REM disorder questionnaire was defined as predictive of RBD. Results: Out of the 418 PD patients, 113 (27.0%) had RBD. With univariate logistic regression analysis, individuals with scores predictive of RBD were 1.66 times more likely to have worse motor findings (p = 0.028). Even with age, gender, and Geriatric Depression Scale scores taken into account, individuals with scores predictive of RBD were 1.69 times more likely to have worse motor findings (p = 0.025). Discussion: PD patients with RBD symptoms had worse motor findings than those unlikely to have RBD. This association provides further evidence for the relationship between RBD and PD

Sleep disorders in Human Immunodeficiency Virus: a substudy of the pharmacokinetics and clinical observations in people over fifty (POPPY) study

Background Self-reported sleep quality is poor in persons with human immunodeficiency virus (PWH), but prior studies commonly used nonspecific questionnaires, investigated only single sleep disorders, or lacked human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-negative controls. We addressed these limitations in the Pharmacokinetics and Clinical Observations in People Over Fifty (POPPY) Sleep Substudy by assessing PWH and HIV-negative controls for insomnia, restless legs syndrome (RLS), and sleep apnea (SA). Methods Previously enrolled POPPY participants coenrolled in this substudy without regard to sleep symptoms. Participants completed validated sleep assessments including the Insomnia Severity Index questionnaire, International Restless Legs Syndrome Study Group questionnaire, and in-home, wrist-worn overnight oximetry. They also completed health-related quality of life questionnaires including 36-item Short Form (SF-36) and Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) sleep questionnaires. Results We enrolled 357 PWH (246 >50 years of age; 111 between 18 and 50 years) and 126 HIV-negative controls >50 years of age. Among PWH, criteria were met by 21% for insomnia, 13% for RLS, and 6% for SA. Compared with HIV-negative controls, PWH had a higher risk of insomnia (adjusted odds ratio, 5.3; 95% confidence interval, 2.2–12.9) but not RLS or SA. Compared with PWH without insomnia, those with insomnia reported significantly worse scores on all SF-36 and PROMIS components; fewer than 30% reported previous diagnosis or treatment for insomnia. Conclusions Insomnia was more common in PWH, associated with worse health-related quality of life, and frequently undiagnosed. Further research should focus on the pathogenesis of insomnia in PWH and the development of effective screening and intervention strategies for this unique population

Prevalence, Distribution, and Impact of Mild Cognitive Impairment in Latin America, China, and India: A 10/66 Population-Based Study

A set of cross-sectional surveys carried out in Cuba, Dominican Republic, Peru, Mexico, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, China, and India reveal the prevalence and between-country variation in mild cognitive impairment at a population level

Sleep Complaints in Older Blacks: Do Demographic and Health Indices Explain Poor Sleep Quality and Duration?

Objective: To examine the relationship between measures of sleep quality and the presence of commonly encountered comorbid and sociodemographic conditions in elderly Black subjects. Method: Analyses included participants from the Baltimore Study of Black Aging (BSBA; n = 450; mean age 71.43 years; SD 9.21). Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) measured overall sleep pattern and quality. Self-reported and objective measures of physical and mental health data and demographic information were collected for all participants. Results: Sociodemographic and comorbid health factors were significantly associated with sleep quality. Results from regression analyses revealed that older age, current financial strain, interpersonal problems, and stress were unique predictors of worse sleep quality. Sleep duration was significantly correlated with age, depressive affect, interpersonal problems, and stress; only age was a unique significant predictor. While participants 62 years or younger had worse sleep quality with increasing levels of stress, there was no significant relationship between sleep quality and stress for participants 81 years and older. Conclusion: Several potential mechanisms may explain poor sleep in urban, community dwelling Blacks. Perceived stressors, including current financial hardship or hardship experienced for an extended time period throughout the lifespan, may influence sleep later in life

Letter to the Editor on “Leveraging Biomedical Engineering Engineers to Improve Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) Care for Our Stroke Patients”

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a condition of recurring, episodic complete or upper airway collapse, is a common disorder, affecting an estimated 17.4% of women and 33.9% of men in the United States [1]. The first line treatment for OSA is Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) therapy, a medical device that delivers adequate airflow and oxygenation during sleep by way of a tube that connects an air compressor to a face mask that can fit over the nose, under the nose, or over the nose and mouth

Sleep Disturbances among Older Adults in the United States, 2002–2012: Nationwide Inpatient Rates, Predictors, and Outcomes

Objective/Background: We examined the rates, predictors, and outcomes [mortality risk (MR), length of stay (LOS), and total charges (TC)] of sleep disturbances in older hospitalized patients. Patients/Methods: Using the U.S. Nationwide Inpatient Sample database (2002–2012), older patients (≥60 years) were selected and rates of insomnia, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and other sleep disturbances (OSD) were estimated using ICD-9CM. TC, adjusted for inflation, was of primary interest, while MR and LOS were secondary outcomes. Multivariable regression analyses were conducted. Results: Of 35,258,031 older adults, 263,865 (0.75%) had insomnia, 750,851 (2.13%) OSA and 21,814 (0.06%) OSD. Insomnia rates increased significantly (0.27% in 2002 to 1.29 in 2012, P-trend \u3c 0.001), with a similar trend observed for OSA (1.47 in 2006 to 5.01 in 2012, P-trend \u3c 0.001). TC (2012 $) for insomnia-related hospital admission increased over time from$22,250 in 2002 to $31,527 in 2012, and increased similarly for OSA and OSD; while LOS and MR both decreased. Women with any sleep disturbance had lower MR and TC than men, while Whites had consistently higher odds of insomnia, OSA, and OSD than older Blacks and Hispanics. Co-morbidities such as depression, cardiovascular risk factors, and neurological disorders steadily increased over time in patients with sleep disturbances. Conclusion: TC increased over time in patients with sleep disturbances while LOS and MR decreased. Further, research should focus on identifying the mechanisms that explain the association between increasing sleep disturbance rates and expenditures within hospital settings and the potential hospital expenditures of unrecognized sleep disturbances in the elderly

Sleep Disturbances among Older Adults in the United States, 2002–2012: Nationwide Inpatient Rates, Predictors, and Outcomes

Objective/Background: We examined the rates, predictors, and outcomes [mortality risk (MR), length of stay (LOS), and total charges (TC)] of sleep disturbances in older hospitalized patients. Patients/Methods: Using the U.S. Nationwide Inpatient Sample database (2002–2012), older patients (≥60 years) were selected and rates of insomnia, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and other sleep disturbances (OSD) were estimated using ICD-9CM. TC, adjusted for inflation, was of primary interest, while MR and LOS were secondary outcomes. Multivariable regression analyses were conducted. Results: Of 35,258,031 older adults, 263,865 (0.75%) had insomnia, 750,851 (2.13%) OSA and 21,814 (0.06%) OSD. Insomnia rates increased significantly (0.27% in 2002 to 1.29 in 2012, P-trend \u3c 0.001), with a similar trend observed for OSA (1.47 in 2006 to 5.01 in 2012, P-trend \u3c 0.001). TC (2012 $) for insomnia-related hospital admission increased over time from$22,250 in 2002 to $31,527 in 2012, and increased similarly for OSA and OSD; while LOS and MR both decreased. Women with any sleep disturbance had lower MR and TC than men, while Whites had consistently higher odds of insomnia, OSA, and OSD than older Blacks and Hispanics. Co-morbidities such as depression, cardiovascular risk factors, and neurological disorders steadily increased over time in patients with sleep disturbances. Conclusion: TC increased over time in patients with sleep disturbances while LOS and MR decreased. Further, research should focus on identifying the mechanisms that explain the association between increasing sleep disturbance rates and expenditures within hospital settings and the potential hospital expenditures of unrecognized sleep disturbances in the elderly