Tuberc Respir Dis.  2007 May;62(5):382-388.

Cognitive Dysfunction in non-hypoxemic COPD Patients

• Kim WJ
• Han SS
• Park MO
• Lee SJ
• Kim SJ
• Lee JH

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The cognitive function is impaired in patients with hypoxemic chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, there are conflicting results regarding the cognitive function in patients with non-hypoxemic COPD. COPD patients also have sleep disorders. This study examined the cognitive function in non-hypoxemic COPD patients, and nocturnal sleep was assessed in COPD patients with a cognitive dysfunction.
METHODS
Twenty-eight COPD patients (mean age, 70.7 years) with an oxygen saturation > 90%, and 33 healthy control subjects (mean age, 69.5 years) who had visited for a routine check-up were selected. The neurocognitive tests were performed using the Korean version of the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease (CERAD-K) Neuropsychological Battery.
RESULTS
The scores of the word list recall test (p=0.03) and the word list recognition test (p=0.006) in the COPD group were significantly lower than those in the control group. Nine patients showed a significantly impaired cognitive function. Seven of these underwent polysomnography, which revealed apnea-hypopnea indices > or = five per hour in five patients. The median oxygen desaturation index and median limb movement index were 3.6/h and 38.6/h, respectively.
CONCLUSION
These results suggest that the verbal memory function is impaired in non-hypoxemic COPD patients. Six out of seven COPD patients with an impaired cognitive function had sleep disorders of sleep apnea and/or periodic limb movements during sleep.

Keyword

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; Cognitive function; Sleep disorders

MeSH Terms

Alzheimer Disease
Extremities
Humans
Memory
Oxygen
Polysomnography
Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive*
Sleep Apnea Syndromes
Sleep Wake Disorders
Oxygen

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