About the seminar
Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is a prevalent sleep-breathing disorder that affects at least 10-20% of adults. It is characterised by frequent complete (apnoea) or partial (hypopnoea) upper airway collapse during sleep, leading to chronic intermittent hypoxia (due to recurrent apnoea). This, in turn, leads to sympathetic surges (stress response) and arousals from sleep, which raise blood pressure. Untreated, this long-term insult during sleep is thought to play a critical role in the development of cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD). However, this relationship has yet to be established, as capturing those nocturnal blood pressure surges is not possible with conventional blood pressure monitoring devices.
This seminar will share findings from a study led by Dr Lauriane Jugé funded from a 2020 UNSW Ageing Futures Institute seed grant, which investigates whether the frequency of these blood pressure surges correlates with CSVD scores determined by brain MRI scans and measures of cognitive performance in mid-life individuals with and without OSA.
About the presenter
Dr Lauriane Jugé is a Senior Research Fellow at NeuRA, as well as a conjoint Lecturer in the School of Biomedical Sciences at UNSW Medicine, and an Associate Investigator at the UNSW Ageing Future Institute. Her research is centred around generating innovative mechanistic insights into complex medical and physiological issues to enhance personalised outcomes for patients. Dr Jugé leads a multidisciplinary research program investigating neurovascular injury associated with ageing in individuals with poor sleep due to obstructive sleep apnoea.