Association of obstructive sleep apnea with cognitive decline and age among non-demented older adults

•The OSA + group demonstrated a significant cognitive decline versus the OSA- group among non-demented individuals.•In APOE ε4- group, our findings showed a significant OSA * age interaction for immediate recall of ADAS-cog11 and RVALT, but not MMSE.•No significant interaction that was observed in the APOE ε4+ individuals. We aimed to investigate whether obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) status affects the relationship between cognitive decline and age among non-demented elderly people. A total of 1422 participants (493 normal cognition and 929 amnestic mild cognitive impairment) were obtained from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) cohort. Based on the self-reported medical history of OSA, participants were categorized into two groups (OSA- and OSA +). Multiple linear regression models were performed to assess the effect of the OSA * Age interaction on MMSE, ADAS-cog11 and RAVLT immediate recall in non-demented group and in APOE ε4 carriers/non-carriers adjusting for gender and educational attainment. In the present study, the OSA + group demonstrated significant cognitive decline versus the OSA- group. In addition, in APOE ε4- group, our findings showed a significant OSA * age interaction for ADAS-cog11 and RVALT immediate recall, but not MMSE. No significant interaction was observed in the APOE ε4+ individuals. In conclusion, our findings implicate that OSA status may affect the association of age with cognitive impairment among non-demented older people.