Periodic leg movements during sleep and cognitive functioning in the older general population

Nicola Andrea Marchi; Arton Peci; José Haba-Rubio; Geoffroy Solelhac; Virginie Bayon; Mathieu Berger; Peter Vollenweider; Pedro Marques-Vidal; Armin von Gunten; Marie-Pierre Françoise Strippoli; Martin Preisig; Bogdan Draganski; Raphael Heinzer

doi:10.1016/j.sleep.2023.07.011

Periodic leg movements during sleep and cognitive functioning in the older general population

Sleep Med. 2023 Sep:109:197-201. doi: 10.1016/j.sleep.2023.07.011. Epub 2023 Jul 15.

Affiliations

¹ Center for Investigation and Research in Sleep, Department of Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland; Laboratory for Research in Neuroimaging, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland; Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montréal, Canada; Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada. Electronic address: nicola.marchi@unil.ch.
² Center for Investigation and Research in Sleep, Department of Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
³ Center for Investigation and Research in Sleep, Department of Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland; URP 7330 VIFASOM, Université Paris-Cité, Paris, France; Centre du Sommeil et de la vigilance, Hôtel Dieu, APHP, Paris, France; Sainbiose Laboratory, Inserm U1059, University of Saint-Etienne, France.
⁴ Service of Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
⁵ Service of Old Age Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
⁶ Psychiatric Epidemiology and Psychopathology Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Prilly, Switzerland.
⁷ Laboratory for Research in Neuroimaging, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland; Neurology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.

PMID: 37473717
DOI: 10.1016/j.sleep.2023.07.011

Abstract

Objective: The current evidence of a relationship between periodic leg movements during sleep (PLMS) and cognitive functioning is limited and inconsistent. This cross-sectional study assessed associations between PLMS and cognitive functioning among community-dwelling older adults.

Methods: We included community-dwelling older adults who underwent a polysomnography and a cognitive assessment. The PLMS index (PLMI) and PLMS arousal index (PLMAI) were categorized into tertiles: PLMI <5/h (reference), 5-29.9/h, ≥30/h; and PLMAI <1/h (reference), 1-4.9/h, ≥5/h. The cognitive assessment consisted of ten scores covering the main cognitive domains: global cognition, processing speed, executive function, language, episodic verbal memory, and visuospatial function. Associations between PLMI, PLMAI, and cognitive scores were assessed using regression unadjusted and adjusted models.

Results: A total of 579 individuals without dementia were included (mean age: 71.5 ± 4.4 years; men 45.4%). The number of participants in the high-PLMI categories, 5-29.9/h and ≥30/h, was 185 (32.0%) and 171 (29.5%), respectively. Participants in the high-PLMI categories showed no significant difference compared to the reference group regarding their cognitive performance according to the unadjusted and adjusted models. Similarly, we found no association between PLMAI severity and cognitive functioning.

Conclusions: This study shows no cross-sectional association between PLMS severity and cognitive functioning among community-dwelling older adults. However, given the paucity of data in this field, further studies are needed to clarify the relationship between PLMS and cognitive functioning.

Keywords: Aging; Cognitive decline; Dementia; General population; Periodic leg movements during sleep; Polysomnography.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Aged
Cognition
Cross-Sectional Studies
Humans
Leg
Male
Nocturnal Myoclonus Syndrome* / epidemiology
Sleep