title: Cognitive executive dysfunction in patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) after CPAP treatment.
abstract: We have previously described impairments of cognitive executive functions in 17 patients with OSAS in comparison with 17 normal controls, as assessed by various frontal-lobe-related tests. In the present study, 10 of these OSAS patients treated with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) were reevaluated after 4-6 months of treatment. Neuropsychological tasks explored attention, short-term memory span, learning abilities, planning capacities, categorizing activities, and verbal fluency. Patients were found to have normalized most of their cognitive executive and learning disabilities, but all the short-term memory tests remained unchanged. These findings are discussed in light of the contribution of the frontal-lobe-related systems to short-term memory functions, and the eventual pathogenic role played by sleep fragmentation and nocturnal hypoxemia, which are related to the occurrence of apneic and hypopneic events. In conclusion, short-term memory impairment was persistent in OSAS patients despite CPAP treatment for 4-6 months.
authors.affiliation: CNRS GDR 978, Department of Clinical and Biological Neurosciences, CHU, Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Naegele
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Pepin
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Levy
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bonnet
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pellat
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Feuerstein
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011175:Positive-Pressure Respiration / Q000379:methods*; D012891:Sleep Apnea Syndromes / Q000150:complications* / Q000628:therapy*; D013997:Time Factors