Poor sleep quality associated with motor cognitive risk syndrome

Poor sleep quality may be linked to incidental but not widespread motor cognitive risk syndrome (MCR), a predementia syndrome characterized by slow gait speed and cognitive complaints, according to a study published online Nov. 6 neurology.

Victoire Leroy, MD, Ph.D., of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, New York, and colleagues examined the association of sleep disturbances with the occurrence and prevalence of MCR in older adults. MCR was defined as cognitive complaints reported on standardized questionnaires and slow gait speed recorded on an electronic treadmill.

The 445 participants were classified into good or poor sleepers based on an estimated cut score from the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI).

The researchers found that 36 of the 403 participants without MCR at baseline developed an MCR event during an average follow-up of 2.9 years. The risk of an MCR event was higher in poor sleepers than in good sleepers (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.6; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.7 to 3.4).

Of the seven components of the PSQI, only daytime sleep-related dysfunction (excessive sleepiness and lower enthusiasm) was significantly associated with MCR in fully adjusted models (adjusted hazard ratio, 3.3; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.5 to 7.4). No association was found between prevalent MCR and poor sleep quality.

“Excessive daytime sleepiness is associated with a higher risk of an MCR event and requires further investigation as a potentially modifiable risk factor,” the authors write.

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