Is Sleep Deprivation Related to Alzheimer Disease?

β-amyloid is considered a brain metabolic “waste product.” High levels are associated with cognitive impairment, and it is a primary constituent of Alzheimer plaque. Impaired sleep is also a risk factor for Alzheimer disease (AD). Although studies in animals indicate that β-amyloid clearance occurs during sleep and that deprivation may lead to higher brain levels, whether sleep deprivation causes a higher β-amyloid burden, thereby leading to AD in humans, is not known.

In this study, researchers performed ¹⁸F-florbetaben positron emission tomography (PET) in 20 healthy controls and compared β-amyloid levels after a night of total sleep deprivation and a full night's sleep. β-amyloid levels were higher in the hippocampus, a region showing ear…