78 The Effects of Hypertension and Obstructive Sleep Apnea on Auditory Learning and Memory in Veterans with PTSD Symptomology

Objective:Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) has been associated with cognitive deficits as evidenced by neuropsychological testing in the domains of attention/working memory, verbal memory, processing speed, and executive function. OSA is often comorbid with hypertension and has been considered a risk factor for hypertension (Kareem et al., 2018; Tietjens et al., 2019). Both hypertension and OSA have been shown to be independent predictors of memory (Kinoshita et al., 2012). OSA and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are also frequently co-occurring, especially among veterans. In a group of veterans with a history of PTSD, we seek to explore the effects of sleep apnea and hypertension on cognitive functioning, particularly auditory learning/memory.Participants and Methods:One hundred and three male and female participants with comorbid OSA and PTSD symptomology were screened as part of a larger VA Palo Alto Health Care System study. Participants (age: x=56.3, a=13.8, 24-81 years; education: x=14.6, a=2.3, 8-20 years; 9.6% female, 89.6% male) completed a neuropsychological battery, including the CVLT-II and WMS-IV Logical Memory. Presence or absence of hypertension was dichotomously coded and AHI severity was categorically coded. An auditory learning/memory composite variable was created using the z-score transformation method (Dodge et al., 2020). Variables and covariates were entered into a hierarchical regression.Results:The initial regression model revealed hypertension and OSA severity to be independent predictors of performance on auditory learning/memory (hypertension: ß= -0.71, p