Webinar - The effect of sleep-wake disturbance in relation to cognition and brain degeneration

This 60-minute webinar is brought to you by Prof Sharon Naismith Synopsis of session: Sleep is critical to alertness, mood, and cognition. Basic science data shows that sleep facilitates synaptic plasticity, neurogenesis, and the promotion of neurotrophins. In addition, recent discoveries show that during sleep, the brain clears away neurotoxins and metabolic waste via the ‘glymphatic’ system. Coupled with epidemiological data, this adds to converging evidence supporting a bidirectional link between sleep and dementia. This webinar will provide a high-level overview of the existing evidence linking sleep-wake disturbances with dementia. It will present evidence linking various forms of sleep-wake dysfunction with cognitive and imaging markers of neurodegeneration within healthy individuals and those with mild cognitive impairment and the mechanisms by which sleep is likely to be important. The links between sleep and overnight memory consolidation will then be discussed as well as possible changes in this process with ageing and neurodegeneration. The final part of the webinar will provide an overview of current treatment options for sleep disturbance in older people. Future directions for the field will be discussed, particularly with respect to understanding pathophysiological mechanisms, interventions, and larger-scale screening of sleep-wake disorders. Learning objectives: 1) Learn about recent developments in sleep science and evidence linking disturbances of sleep to cognitive decline and dementia 2) Become familiar with different ways of assessing sleep 3) Discover new directions for the field of sleep-wake disturbance in ageing and dementia.