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Donepezil improves obstructive sleep apnea in Alzheimer disease: a double-blind, placebo-controlled study
Moraes W, Poyares D, Sukys-Claudino L, Guilleminault C, Tufik S.. Chest, 2008-01-15
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Background There is an association between Alzheimer disease and sleep-disordered breathing. Donepezil is the drug most frequently used to treat cognitive symptoms in Alzheimer disease. This study evaluates the effects of donepezil on obstructive sleep apnea in patients with Alzheimer disease. Methods Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled design. Twenty-three patients with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer disease and apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) > 5/h were allocated to two groups: donepezil treated (n = 11) and placebo treated (n = 12). Polysomnography and cognitive evaluation using Alzheimer disease assessment scale-cognitive (ADAS-cog) subscale were performed at baseline and after 3 months. Cognitive and sleep data were analyzed using analysis of variance. Results AHI and oxygen saturation improved significantly after donepezil treatment compared to baseline and placebo (p Conclusions Donepezil treatment improved AHI and oxygen saturation in patients with Alzheimer disease. Treatment also increased REM sleep duration and reduced ADAS-cog scores. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00480870.
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APA 7th
Moraes, W., Poyares, D., Sukys-Claudino, L., Guilleminault, C., & Tufik, S. (2008). Donepezil improves obstructive sleep apnea in Alzheimer disease: a double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Chest. https://doi.org/10.1378/chest.07-1446
Vancouver
Moraes W, Poyares D, Sukys-Claudino L, Guilleminault C, Tufik S. Donepezil improves obstructive sleep apnea in Alzheimer disease: a double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Chest. 2008. doi:10.1378/chest.07-1446. PMID: 18198262.
BibTeX
@article{moraes2008-18198262,
author = {Moraes, W. and Poyares, D. and Sukys-Claudino, L. and Guilleminault, C. and Tufik, S.},
title = {{Donepezil improves obstructive sleep apnea in Alzheimer disease: a double-blind, placebo-controlled study}},
journal = {Chest},
year = {2008},
doi = {10.1378/chest.07-1446},
pmid = {18198262},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1378/chest.07-1446}
}
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Key findings
- Results AHI and oxygen saturation improved significantly after donepezil treatment compared to baseline and placebo (p Conclusions Donepezil treatment improved AHI and oxygen saturation in patients with Alzheimer disease.
Why it matters
In this double-blind, placebo-controlled study of 23 patients with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer disease and sleep apnea, donepezil treatment significantly improved the apnea-hypopnea index and oxygen saturation compared with baseline and placebo, and also increased REM sleep duration and reduced ADAS-cog scores. This addresses sleep-disordered breathing in Alzheimer disease rather than curing or preventing the disease itself.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthHigh
How this study scored 65/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a randomised controlled trial. Scored zero for sample size and effect reported because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Chest) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | CHEST Journal: journal h-index 407 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 11 / 12 | A randomised controlled trial (from PubMed type “Randomized Controlled Trial”) |
| Strength of evidence | 5 / 5 | Rated “high” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2008 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (pubmed indexes it as a clinical or observational study) |
| Randomised / blinded | 2 / 2 | Randomised and blinded or placebo-controlled (as stated in the record) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 118 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 5.9 citations a year over 20 year(s) since 2008 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 5.4× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 3 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 10 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Sergio Brasil Tufik: h-index 67 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | Stanford University: institution h-index 2,684 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | PubMed indexes it as a multicentre study |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 18198262) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 65 / 100 | — |
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