University of Michigan Sleep Expert Research Highlights at #SLEEP2023

June 3 marks the start of the Annual Meeting for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the Sleep Research Society. The Michigan Medicine Sleep Disorders Centers will be well-represented with leadership and participation in over 20 events, from oral and poster presentations to discussions and posters. We have scores of experts available to discuss innovations and developments in the field of sleep medicine. We also have a few presentations of note:

• Late-breaking Abstracts:
  • Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Cumulative Dementia Risk Among Women and Men: A Population-based Study – Tiffany Braley, M.D., Ronald Chervin, M.D., Galit Dunietz, Ph.D. (6/6 at 5 p.m. CT)
    • Key finding: The presence of known or suspected obstructive sleep apnea is associated with a greater cumulative risk of dementia onset in older women and men.
  • Within-person Ambulatory Measures of Sleep Duration Predict Chronic Symptom Severity in Multiple Sclerosis – Tiffany Braley, M.D., Ronald Chervin, M.D., Daniel Whibley, Ph.D. (6/6 at 12 p.m. CT)
    • Key finding: Greater within-person variability in sleep duration, and previous night’s sleep duration, were strongly associated with symptoms of daytime impairment in MS, including fatigue, cognitive difficulties, and pain.  In contrast to more commonly used aggregate sleep metrics, measures of night-to-night variability in sleep and previous night’s sleep within an individual more sensitively predict chronic symptom severity in people with MS in real time, and could be used to guide personalized approaches to chronic MS symptom management.
•  Oral Presentation:
  • Sleep disturbances and subsequent mobility disability in chronic disease: Findings from the Nurses’ Health Study – Daniel Whibley, Ph.D., Tiffany Braley, M.D. (6/7 at 11:15 a.m. CT)
    • Key finding: Indicators of poor sleep health predicted a more marked increase in mobility disability over time. Notably, known or suspected obstructive sleep apnea was a consistent predictor of a greater likelihood of escalation in mobility disability.
•  Posters:
  • Behavioral sleep characteristics may differ in toddlers with epilepsy compared to children without – Gita Gupta, M.D. (6/6 at 12 p.m. CT)
    • Key finding: The nature of behavioral sleep challenges in toddlers with epilepsy is complex and differs compared to children without epilepsy. The interplay between the child and their caregiver, in addition to the child’s own sleep behaviors is important to understand disordered sleep in toddlers with epilepsy.  
  • Obstetrician-Gynecologists’ knowledge and practice patterns regarding sleep disorders in pregnant patients – Greta Raglan, Ph.D., Leslie Swanson, Ph.D. (6/6 at 5 p.m. CT)
    • Key finding: Most OB-GYNs don’t regularly screen for sleep concerns during pregnancy and lack training on management of sleep disorders during pregnancy.