Association between poor sleep quality and an increased risk of developing Alzheimer's, new study finds

Press release issued: 3 November 2022

New research has shown an association between sleep quality – less than seven hours - and Alzheimer's disease-related pathology in people without cognitive impairment. The study by an international team led by the Pasqual Maragall Foundation research centre, the Barcelonaβeta Brain Research Centre (BBRC), together with researchers from the University of Bristol and North Bristol NHS Trust, is published in the scientific journal Brain Communications today [3 November].

The results of the analysis, part of the European Prevention of Alzheimer's Dementia Longitudinal Cohort Study (EPAD LCS), indicate that poor sleep quality is related to an increase in pathology of Alzheimer's disease. This finding is relevant to help define future therapies, so that they can be targeted at the appropriate phase of the disease.

Read the full University of Bristol press release

Paper: ‘Cross-sectional and longitudinal association of sleep and Alzheimer biomarkers in cognitively unimpaired adults’ by Blackman, Jonathan; Stankeviciute, Laura et al. in Brain Communications [open access]