Untreated sleep apnea raises risk of Parkinson’s, study finds

(Press-News.org) New research reveals that people with untreated obstructive sleep apnea have a higher risk of developing Parkinson’s disease. However, they can significantly reduce the risk by improving the quality of their sleep by using continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP.

The study, which published today in the journal JAMA Neurology, examined electronic health records covering more than 11 million U.S. military veterans who received care through the Department of Veterans Affairs between 1999 and 2022.

The research was led by Oregon Health & Science University and the Portland VA Health Care System.

Parkinson’s is a neurodegenerative condition that affects an estimated 1 million people nationwide, with the risk rising incrementally year by year for people over age 60.

The new study suggests a heightened risk of people with untreated sleep apnea developing Parkinson’s over the long term.

Even after adjusting to rule out confounding factors like obesity, age and high blood pressure, the study found a strong link between untreated sleep apnea and Parkinson’s. Among millions of people with sleep apnea, those who didn’t treat the condition with CPAP were nearly twice as likely to have Parkinson’s as those who did.

“It’s not at all a guarantee that you’re going to get Parkinson’s, but it significantly increases the chances,” said co-author Gregory Scott, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of pathology in the OHSU School of Medicine and a pathologist for at the VA Portland.

Sleep apnea is a common condition where an individual’s breathing stops and restarts many times during sleep, which can prevent the body from getting enough oxygen.

“If you stop breathing and oxygen is not at a normal level, your neurons are probably not functioning at a normal level either,” said lead author Lee Neilson, M.D., assistant professor of neurology at OHSU and a staff neurologist at the Portland VA. “Add that up night after night, year after year, and it may explain why fixing the problem by using CPAP may build in some resilience against neurodegenerative conditions, including Parkinson’s.”

Neilson said he intends to prioritize the health benefits of sound sleep with his patients, especially in view of the research revealing an elevated risk of Parkinson’s.

“I think it will change my practice,” he said.

Scott noted that even though some people with sleep apnea resist treatment with CPAP, he pointed to the experience of many veterans who swear by it.

"The veterans who use their CPAP love it," he said. "They're telling other people about it. They feel better, they're less tired. Perhaps if others know about this reduction in risk of Parkinson's disease, it will further convince peopel with sleep apnea to give CPAP a try."

In addition to Scott and Neilson, co-authors include Isabella Montano, B.A., Jasmin May, M.D., Ph.D., Jonathan Elliott, Ph.D., and Miranda Lim, M.D., Ph.D., of OHSU and the Portland VA Health Care System; and Yeilim Cho, M.D., and Jeffrey Iliff, Ph.D., of the University of Washington and the VA Puget Sound Health Care System.

The research was supported by the VA, grant awards BX005760, CX00253, I01RX004822, I01RX005371, CX002022, BX006155 and Bx006155; the John and Tami Marick Family Foundation, the Collins Medical Trust; the National Institute on Aging of the National Institutes of Health, award P30AG066518; and the U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity, 820 Chandler Street, Fort Detrick, Maryland 21702-5014, under award numbers HT9425-24-1-0774 and HT9425-24-1-0775. Opinions, interpretations, conclusions and recommendations are those of the authors and are not necessarily endorsed by the Department of Defense, the NIH, VA or other funders.

END